Estonian cybersecurity startup Blackwall has raised €45 million in Series B funding to support its AI-driven reverse proxy solution, GateKeeper. The round was led by Dawn Capital, with participation from MMC Ventures, which also contributed to Blackwall’s €12 million funding last March.
Blackwall’s flagship product, GateKeeper, is designed to protect websites from cyberattacks by routing network traffic through a reverse proxy. This approach helps prevent malicious traffic from reaching websites and makes it harder for hackers to conduct reconnaissance before launching attacks. Currently, GateKeeper protects over 2.3 million online services.
GateKeeper also uses advanced AI technology to assist website administrators in blocking harmful traffic. The AI Advisor tool recommends rules for administrators based on a website’s specific needs. The platform also allows companies to create custom traffic filtering policies.
One of GateKeeper’s standout features is its deep packet inspection, which analyzes both the packet header and the data inside. This method helps detect a wider range of potential threats compared to traditional cybersecurity tools, which only inspect the packet header.
Blackwall claims GateKeeper is effective in blocking various types of cyberattacks, including distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, SQL injections, and attempts to install malware on servers. The software can also detect bots that scrape content without permission.
In addition to its security features, GateKeeper offers several other tools, such as automatic SSL certificate renewal and a load balancer that evenly distributes network traffic across servers, preventing any one server from becoming overwhelmed.
Instead of selling GateKeeper directly to end users, Blackwall markets the platform to hosting and managed service providers. These companies can use the software to reduce operating costs by up to 25% and offer premium cybersecurity services to their customers.
With the new funding, Blackwall plans to expand its team and accelerate product development as it looks to grow its presence internationally.
