Internet security firm changes name, relocates

Internet security firm Safewww has changed its name and put down deeper roots on Long Island.

The firm has moved from temporary quarters in Uniondale to a 3,000- square-foot office in Garden City and changed its name to Safe3w, said Kenneth Bob, chief executive officer.

The move to Garden City provides a more stable base for the 27- person company, Bob said. The name change, however, came in response to the hardship of uttering the former name.

"Safewww reads very well, but it's impossible to say," Bob said. "As the letter to our customers says: 'It doesn't really roll off your tongue.'"

Meanwhile, the 3-year-old company, which closed the first tranche of its $5.3 million series B funding in December 2001, is seeking additional funding in the same tranche.

"We're seeking to bring that up to $8 million, and we're in advanced talks with a couple of investors," said Bob. He said the money would be used primarily for an expanded sales and support staff.

Safe3w uses content encryption and user authentication to secure Internet transactions. The technology also can be used in digital music and video transactions, auctions and gaming.Safe3w has a major research center in Herzylia, Israel, but Bob said the recent violence in the Middle East has had scant effect as the company dips into the venture capital market.

"I think people in the investment community understand that Israel copes pretty well through times like this," he said. "There's really no negative impact. People have had reserve duty as they always do, but people come back and continue to work."

To date, the company's three primary investors have been Archery Capital and Cohen & Co., both of Manhattan, and Cablevision Systems of Bethpage.

Bob said Cablevision invested "because they saw lots of applications for secure technology in their plans." Bob said Safe3w's technology potentially could be used in cable television set-top boxes, though it is not currently.

Bob also said Safe3w has signed up major new customers in the health care and payments area, though it would be premature to name them.

Copyright 2002 Dolan Media Newswires
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