Cybersecurity risk-management program Derive is slated to officially launch next month. (Courtesy Hive Systems)
A local cybersecurity startup is wrapping up 2024 with the rollout of its latest software product, shortly after it bought into downtown Richmond for a new headquarters.
Hive Systems plans to officially launch a new software offering called Derive next month.
Derive started off as an in-house tool, which Hive used it in the course of its consulting work. After clients expressed interest in having their own access to the program, a project kicked off that culminated in a software-as-a-service product spun out as its own company.
Derive allows users to compare the landscape of cyber risks like ransomware attacks and phishing attempts against their companies’ policies and tech infrastructure, and determine what kind of financial impact a breach would have. The subscription-based service costs $4,400 a month.
“What Derive does is it looks at all the ways that things can go wrong, and so it helps you understand what those risks and narratives are,” said Alex Nette, the CEO and co-founder of Hive.
Derive was inspired by what Nette said was a common problem for cybersecurity teams – quantifying their companies’ level of risk and what the consequences might be to bosses.
Alex Nette
“It’s a problem we see consistently in companies across the world, from small startups here in Richmond all the way to companies out in Silicon Valley. And it’s that cybersecurity teams have trouble showing that they are a value-add to the business,” he said. “It helps those companies show that they are not only making the right strategic decisions, but that (cybersecurity teams) are offering something to the business.”
Derive incorporates data about cyberattacks to allow users to get a handle on the risks that are out there. It can be used to assess the cybersecurity risk of an entire company, specific departments or teams, and evaluate the usefulness of third-party cybersecurity tools. The system also allows users to analyze their current cybersecurity strategy to see if it’s the best fit for their circumstances.
“You can make decisions about whether you are reducing the risk in the right areas. You might have been scared of ransomware three years ago and gone all in on ransomware protections. But it turns out ransomware isn’t even your number one threat, it’s something else,” Nette said.
Nette declined to share the cost to develop Derive, which is jointly owned by Hive and the startup’s vice president Corey Neskey.
Derive has been in beta-testing mode since earlier this year, and currently has seven users that range from an American university to a British financial firm, Nette said. He said the goal is to have 30 paid Derive users by late 2025.
Nette said a capital raise is underway to secure $1.9 million that would be used to hire employees dedicated to Derive, which was developed and is currently managed by the Hive team. Hive, which was founded in 2018, currently has 20 employees.
As Hive launches its spinoff, the company also has a new home base in the works. The company recently bought a two-story downtown building at 26 N. Eighth St., where the firm is planning to occupy a portion of the building and rent out the remainder.
Hive spent $495,000 to buy the building, per online records. The property is next to Sefton Coffee Co. and near the General Assembly building. Hive is currently fully remote, and would look to move into the new office in early 2025, Nette said.
The creation of Derive follows Hive’s official rollout earlier this year of Audora, an auditing software program intended to help cybersecurity auditors review their clients’ policies.