Smart money on security

The US Federal Government and the private sector venture capital industry are throwing money at new ways to increase hi-tech security.

The Federal Government's technology standards agency, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), awarded $5m in funding for nine research grants to enhance security for critical infrastructures such as air traffic control systems and more secure telecoms systems.

NIST awarded the grants to five companies, three universities and two commercial/academic partnerships. The largest grant, nearly $1m, went to Telcordia Technologies for research into advanced security and enforcement for next-generation networks. The University of Maryland received $861,236 for work on secure wireless infrastructures.

Additional awards were given to the University of California, San Diego, Washington State University, Network Associates and Lockheed Martin.

Richard Clarke, national co-ordinator for security, critical infrastructure and counter-terrorism at the National Security Council, said: "The research grants will make an important down payment towards addressing the many cyber challenges we need to surmount to protect America's critical infrastructures."

NIST received 133 applications, totalling $73m in requests for the available $5m in funding.

In the private sector, RipTech, a provider of scalable, real-time managed security services, said it has received $21m in funding, including an $18m investment led by Silicon Valley-based private equity investment firm, Broadview Capital Partners.

Existing investors Columbia Capital and Providence Equity Partners participated in the investment. The total includes $2.75m in additional funding secured from Comerica Bank.

Corona Networks raised a $40m third round of funding, led by Merrill Lynch Ventures and New Enterprise Associates. Corona provides Internet Protocol-based services, such as encryption and security for internet service providers, which in turn resell the service to their customers. Other investors included Alliance Ventures and Redwood Ventures.

KnowNow raised $15m in a second round of funding, led by TPG Ventures, with additional investors Kleiner Perkins Cauffield & Byers, and Morgan Stanley.

The company develops software applications designed to provide companies with the means to exchange real-time content from both inside and outside the firewall.