Critical Start Finishes Fiscal Year with Strong Business Growth and New Approach to Cyber Risk Reduction

Today, Critical Start, a leading provider of Managed Detection and Response (MDR) cybersecurity solutions and pioneer of Managed Cyber Risk Reduction (MCRR), announced strong business growth at the conclusion of its fiscal year ending Jan. 31, 2024. The company saw an Average Annual Return (AAR) of around 30% this year and credits the growth to including cyber risk as a focus on top of their core MDR business. 

Forrester and Critical Start’s Managed Cyber Risk Reduction Opportunity Snapshot found that 81% of enterprises have an inadequate approach to cyber risk management, highlighting a necessary shift on how businesses think about proactive cybersecurity protection. Last year, the company released several reports including the Cyber Risk Confidence Index, Cyber Risk Landscape Peer Report, and biannual Threat Intelligence Reports, leveraging the findings to make informed decisions on product and business updates to continue meeting industry demands.    

In 2023, Critical Start advanced its company strategy by unveiling MCRR, the next evolution of MDR and a groundbreaking new approach to security that goes beyond threat-based detection and response to support organizational security programs across the six Functions of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework (NIST CSF):  Govern, Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover. Critical Start launched the following offerings as part of its MCRR strategy and supporting a proactive approach to cybersecurity:  

· Asset Visibility: Helps customers become more proactive within their security program by empowering them to uncover assets that need protection, validate that expected security controls are in place and working, and identify areas of risk exposure due to gaps in security coverage.   

Also read: Three Major Trends that will Transform Cybersecurity Landscape in 2024

· Critical Start Risk Assessment: Aligns risk assessments to industry frameworks, benchmarks against peers, and stack-ranks recommendations for improvement. The solution provides enterprises with visibility and insight into their risk posture against similar organizations, with the ability to measure security maturity against expected levels and receive data-driven insights to prioritize next steps toward improved security.  

· Quick Start Risk Assessments: With similar capabilities to the Risk Assessment solution, later this spring, Critical Start will launch Quick Start Risk Assessments. The free service includes a 15-question guided survey, maps to 75% of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework (NIST CSF 2.0), provides peer benchmarking, and delivers actionable insights through dashboards and reports.  

Prior to Critical Start’s MCRR launch and corresponding solutions, the company launched its Managed Extended Detection and Response (XDR) offering and announced the upcoming release of its risk-based Vulnerability Prioritization offering, which is designed to address many of the challenges security leaders face with their vulnerability management programs. The company also expanded partnerships with industry-leading companies Sumo Logic® and Lenovo™.  

“Amid a turbulent, yet innovative year in cybersecurity, Critical Start has continuously proven it’s a major industry player and at the forefront of trends and transformation,” said Rob Davis, CEO of Critical Start. “Our impressive insight into the needs of our customers and evolving demands within cybersecurity has pushed us to carve out an entirely new industry category, ultimately changing the way organizations approach and mitigate cyber risk.”  

Critical Start has been the recipient of numerous industry accolades and awards this past year, including:  

· Named a Best Place to Work and Best Midsize Place to Work in Dallas, Texas 2024 by Built In’s Best Places to Work Awards  

· Selected to participate in Microsoft’s Security Copilot Partner Private Preview  

· Winner of “Most Innovative Managed Detection and Response” category in Cyber Defense Magazine’s Top InfoSec Innovators Awards  

· Winner of Cyber Defense Magazine’s 2023 Global Infosec Award for “Next Gen Managed Detection and Response (MDR)” category 

 To support strong growth, the company is excited to announce numerous leadership investments, including the appointment of Rich Scott to Chief Revenue Officer and the promotion of Jamie Slattery to Senior Vice President of Engineering.  

Scott brings over 19 years of sales and executive experience, previously holding CRO positions as Sontiq and Xcitium. At Critical Start, Scott oversees strategic channel initiatives and account plans with solution provider and reseller partners to drive growth for the company’s Managed Cyber Risk Reduction and Managed Detection and Response subscription services.  

In addition to numerous product launches and industry award wins, the company expanded its footprint with teams in Canada, and established another state-of-the-art Security Operations Center (SOC) in Lehi, Utah.