With $20m in Funding, IoT Startup Afero Talks Up Security

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In-brief: Afero, a startup offering a platform for Internet of Things devices, scored a $20.3 million Series A financing round, in part by promising a scalable Internet of Things platform that doesn’t skimp on security. 

Afero, a startup offering a platform for Internet of Things devices, scored a $20.3 million Series A financing round, in part by promising a scalable Internet of Things platform that doesn’t skimp on security.

The company announced the funding round on Wednesday, backed by Samsung Catalyst Fund and Softbank Group. The company , saying its platform will boost security for IoT deployment, with features for securing mobile applications and providing “network access control services” for IoT networks and cloud services.

Afero has deep backing. It is the brainchild of Joe Britt, the company’s CEO and co-founder and veteran of Google, where he worked to make Android the go-to operating system for embedded devices.

“Our technology helps companies rapidly create and deploy connected products by automating the core embedded, mobile, and cloud development tasks,” said Britt in a statement. “Afero was designed to speed and simplify product development, whether companies choose to modernize a legacy product or create something entirely new.”

[Read more Security Ledger coverage of Internet of Things platforms here.]

Features built into the Afero platform would make it more difficult for hackers to profile IoT devices in deployment and secure communications to and from deployed devices and cloud based management servers.

The from application services on your phone to network access control services with built-in authentication to the cloud and back.•Interoperability: Afero seamlessly connects walled gardens by intelligently assembling all your smart devices, regardless of brand, so they can work together through the secure Afero end-to-end architecture.

For endpoints, Afero developed a SIP (system in package) – essentially a secure radio chip that can be added to existing devices or new products. The company is partnering with the Japanese firm Murata to manufacture the chip. The SIP connects devices to Afero’s cloud platform.

On the back end, Afero promises to “do all the back-end work” for developers with development tools and products ranging from device prototyping to manufacturing and deployment. The idea is to free would-be IoT product firms to focus on feature development. Afero handles “all the connectivity and security work within a reliable cloud infrastructure,” the company said.

Afero will also provide a range of analytics and reporting tools for products that are in deployment.

With the market for Internet of Things products poised to take off, any number of companies already promise to act as “turnkey” solutions for IoT developers who want to avoid the mess and hassle of building a secure and robust platform on which to deploy their technology.

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