Stopping MENA cyber attacks

Data breaches are costly.

In the Middle East, each breach costs about $8 million on average - the second-highest rate in the world, after the US.

But this is hardly a podium finish any region strives for.

Even with these high costs, the region remains far from self-reliant when it comes to cybersecurity solutions.

In 2023, only 5 cybersecurity startups raised funding - totalling $12.6 million.

That’s about 0.57% of total funding raised, and 1.02% of deal flow last year (excluding debt financing).

If you think that’s low, hold onto your (black)hats, because only $1 million was secured by 4 MENA-based cybersecurity startups the year before.

This all speaks to a common critique often levelled against the MENA startup tech ecosystem: that the lack of IP being built in the region - both for the region and beyond - points to a gulf in deep tech and engineering talent.

But try telling that to a certain Dubai-based cybersecurity startup founded in 2019.

Before raising a cent of pre-seed funding, spiderSilk had already discovered and disclosed vulnerabilities in companies like WeWork and MoviePass and collaborated with giants like Samsung Global, Huawei, and EA Games.

Their strategy of uncovering data breaches and sharing these findings with tech outlets like VICE and TechCrunch was a highly effective PR move that quickly shifted them from promise-based to evidence-based security.

In a practice that is unfortunately all too uncommon, Rami El Malak and Mossab Hussein were walking the walk while talking the talk.

🕸️ spiderSilk: re-imagining threat detection

spiderSilk simplifies cyber threat scanning, giving companies a clear understanding of where they are vulnerable to attacks.

But before we find ourselves ensnared in a spider's web (see what I did there?), I think it’s important to take a step back and establish what puts companies off from investing in cybersecurity infrastructure in the first place.

To this end, I’ve crudely identified three key factors, which I’ll call the “3 Cs”:

1. Complexity

2. Complacency

3. Cost

Let’s keep these 3 Cs in mind.

After securing a $500k pre-seed led by Global Ventures, with participation from FutureTech and angels like Careem co-founder Karl Magnus Olsson, Spidersilk got to work on its MVP.

Their goal was clear: to create "security as a service" for the global market, not just a regional solution.