BlackSpider Technologies Limited was a British software company founded in 2002 and subsequently acquired by
SurfControl in July 2006.
The Company provided
cloud computing
Cloud computing is the on-demand availability of computer system resources, especially data storage ( cloud storage) and computing power, without direct active management by the user. Large clouds often have functions distributed over mul ...
services for filtering
email spam
Email spam, also referred to as junk email, spam mail, or simply spam, is unsolicited messages sent in bulk by email (spamming).
The name comes from a Monty Python sketch in which the name of the canned pork product Spam is ubiquitous, unavoida ...
and other
malware
Malware (a portmanteau for ''malicious software'') is any software intentionally designed to cause disruption to a computer, server, client, or computer network, leak private information, gain unauthorized access to information or systems, depri ...
.
History
BlackSpider was a
start-up company founded in 2002 by John Cheney in
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
,
Berkshire
Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
, UK.
In January 2004 Casenove Private Equity invested £4.6m ($6.6m) in the business, allowing the organisation to grow into the French and German markets.
In July 2006 SurfControl, a UK listed PLC, acquired BlackSpider for £19.5m in cash.
At the point of acquisition BlackSpider had £4m in historic revenues, an operating loss of £3.1m and over 1,200 customers.
In October 2007
Websense acquired
SurfControl for approximately £204m.
Following the acquisition of SurfControl by Websense, the original BlackSpider Management Team, including John Cheney, left to foun
Workbooks.com a provider of web-based CRM software for small businesses.
Products
MailControl was the brand name for BlackSpider Technologies email filtering services. These products are now sold by
Forcepoint
Forcepoint, an American multinational corporation software company headquartered in Austin, Texas, that develops computer security software and data protection, cloud access security broker, firewall and cross-domain solutions.
Forcepoint was f ...
under the brand name Hosted Email Security.
Notes
External links
Companies House UK Company Number: 04447164
Insider Article – 7 January 2004 Silicon Article Surfcontrol Catches Blackspider – 16 July 2006John Layden, The Register – 13 July 2006Websense Investor Release – 3 October 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackspider Technologies Limited
Software companies of the United Kingdom
Cloud applications