FireEye raises $14.5M for botnet protection

FireEye has raised $14.5 million in a third round of funding to continue its efforts to protect consumers and businesses from “botnets”, which are networks of infected and remotely controlled computers.

Ashar Aziz, the company’s founder and chief executive, says FireEye complements traditional antivirus and security programs. Not only does the Menlo Park, Calif.-based startup focus on botnets — which can be used for crimes ranging from identity theft to government espaionage — it’s also unique in that it protection measures aren’t just based on attackers’ known behaviors, Aziz says. FireEye is building a global network of customers, and the more people use the FireEye Botwall, the smarter the product will become, he adds.

The new funds will bring total financing for the company, which was founded in 2004, to $34.5 million, including $6.45 million raised in 2006. Aziz says FireEye will use the money to expand the sales and marketing team and release new versions of the product.

The funding was led by DAG Ventures; Juniper Networks, JAFCO Ventures, SVB Capital, Norwest Venture Partners and Sequoia Capital also participated.

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