Eight years ago Mark Cooper left his job at Microsoft and set out as a consultant working with clients in a cybersecurity area where he has deep expertise. Now, he is evolving his practice from consulting and training with the release of its first product.
Cooper’s company is PKI Solutions and it specializes in Public Key Infrastructure. PKIs may not be top of mind for most consumers, but they are an encryption system and critical function in communication, identity management and data storage.
But while this technology is foundational it is also one that can be a huge blindspot for companies, said Cooper. Many PKI environments are created and then left alone, and any problems, like a malicious tampering, aren’t known unless the environment breaks.
“It’s a weird paradox,” said Cooper of the importance and simultaneous vulnerability of the infrastructure. “Our product allows organizations to have a holistic view of their PKI. Is it operating? Is it secure? Is someone tampering with it? Is it being used in the right way?”
For example, an energy company that uses smart meters will have certifications from PKIs and transmit usage data over a wireless signal, said Cooper. Those companies have no way to make sure the PKI stays operational and secure.
PKI Solutions’ product is called PKI Spotlight and it addresses these issues.
It was launched publicly March 14 but has been in development since 2019. During the pandemic, Cooper was able to focus staff on product development while clients were focused elsewhere. Last fall, the product was running with eight customers in the U.S. and New Zealand for a closed beta, Cooper said.
Response has been positive. Cooper said he has yet to have a customer interaction where their needs aren’t addressed by the product. Companies are interested as well as managed IT and service providers.
PKI Solutions itself has been growing. Three years ago, the company was four people and in the last six months it hit 15 people. It has six open positions right now. The team works out of the CENTRL Office coworking space in Lake Oswego.
To fund this shift to product, the company received a $2 million revolving credit facility from Northwest Bank. Cooper intends to use this money to expand the engineering team, sales and marketing. He noted that customer education will be a large part of the company’s strategy since its product is a first on the market.
The company is profitable and is continuing its consulting and training work to fund growth. Although, if the right partner comes along Cooper would evaluate other options.
“There are things we could do better and faster with external investment. The challenge is where we fit in VC stages of funding,” he said. “This isn't a pivot, it’s a fourth line of business.”
