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Exclusive Interview with ScanSafe Co-Founder, Eldar Tuvey and Roy Tuvey, largest global provider of SaaS Web Security

By Bettina Padurano for CEOWORLD Magazine Updated:October 29, 2009

ScanSafe is the pioneer and largest global provider of SaaS Web Security, ensuring a safe and productive Internet environment for businesses. ScanSafe solutions keep malware off corporate networks and allow businesses to control and secure the use of the Web. As a SaaS solution, ScanSafe eliminates the burden of purchasing and maintaining infrastructure in-house, significantly lowering the total cost of ownership. Powered by its proactive, multilayered Outbreak Intelligence™ threat detection technology, ScanSafe processes more than a billion Web requests each month and 200 million blocks each month for customers in over 90 countries.

In 2009, the company was awarded “Best Content Security” solution by SC Magazine Europe for the third consecutive year.

Mr. Eldar Tuvey, please tell us about yourself?

I began my career in mergers and acquisitions at Goldman Sachs in London. I then went on to earn my MBA at INSEAD before founding ScanSafe with my brother.

Mr. Roy Tuvey, what is your role in ScanSafe, Please tell our readers about you?

I act as the president of ScanSafe, Eldar is the CEO. I began my career in investment banking in London, at Merrill Lynch.

What is ScanSafe?

ScanSafe is the leading provider of SaaS Web security. We protect companies when users access the Internet, and we were the first company in the world to do it via a cloud-based model. We now have customers in over 100 countries.

How did the idea of offering Web security via a SaaS model came in to play?

We founded a company in 1999 called Mailround that offered an email-marketing service to companies. That business helped us to process large volumes of Web traffic off-site. At the time we weren’t screening it for viruses – we were actually adding marketing messages but it was the logical next step. Ironically, we actually settled upon the idea to focus on SaaS Web Security (although it wasn’t called that then) whilst on a plane to New York. By the time the plane landed in JFK we had enough to pull together a business plan.

ScanSafe holds over 30% of the worldwide SaaS Web security market, how you are planning to expand it?
Well, the Web security market as a whole is set to expand rapidly over the next few years with estimates that it will reach $2.3 billion by 2012 and within that, the SaaS delivery model is expected to grow the fastest.

How do you see the future of the SaaS Web security business?

I think SaaS Web Security has now established itself as a form factor in its own right. Companies originally were skeptical about the idea of having their Web traffic scanned off site or “in the cloud”. They felt it would be less secure or that they would lose control. Those concerns are now a thing of the past as companies have come to realize that keeping the nasty stuff well away from the corporate network intrinsically makes sense. As a result, we expect to see more demand for SaaS Web security especially with companies with a lot of branch offices and mobile workers.

Which company do you consider your main competitor?

We see our main competitors as the traditional software or appliance vendors like Websense and Blue Coat. Increasingly, however, other traditional security vendors like Symantec and McAfee have begun to make their moves into our space so the market is heating up.

What makes ScanSafe better than others?

Today Internet is a mission-critical application for companies so for them to move to a SaaS model requires them to have abiding trust that your provider can deliver the goods. We are proud to say that in five years at ScanSafe our service has had 100% availability – something that many internal IT departments would give their right arm for. Furthermore, SaaS platforms utilize something called the “network effect”. The idea being that the more customers (i.e. Web traffic) ScanSafe has on the platform the better able we are to identify malware outbreaks and track attacks as they spread across the Internet. This means that each individual customer benefits from everyone else sharing the platform. This is a huge advantage in the fight against malware.

What do you think Cisco’s intent is in acquiring ScanSafe?

Cisco’s vision is to build a “borderless network security architecture”. What that hopes to achieve is that a company’s network is protected wherever its employee are located – at the company’s headquarters, a regional office, at home or on the road. To do this, Cisco needs to be able to offer a wide range of solutions that can be deployed in various ways. After all, every customer has its own network and differing requirements. Being able to choose between traditional on-premise solutions with new “cloud-based” solutions and even a mixture of the two (hybrid-hosted) is a good starting point for fulfilling that vision.

What is in it for Cisco?

ScanSafe is the clear leader in SaaS Web Security currently holding over 30% of the market – more than four times the market share of all other named vendors. By acquiring ScanSafe, Cisco is effectively launching itself to the forefront of the SaaS Web security industry. Not to mention gaining access to a highly motivated team of SaaS experts, an existing customer base spread across 100 countries and relationships with fast-moving partners like Sprint, Orange and AT&T that resell the ScanSafe service as their own.

How will this move secure ScanSafe as the top player in SaaS Web security?

We have always been the top player in SaaS Web security since we pioneered this market back in 2004. Fast forward five years later, and despite numerous imitators, ScanSafe still holds over 30% of the market.

How will Cisco IronPort high-performance Web security appliance and ScanSafe’s leading SaaS Web security service work together?

It is still early days in the relationship to announce all the ins-and-outs of how we envisage these two solutions working together but I think the key point is that the customer will be given more choice. They can choose between on-premise, SaaS, or a hybrid-hosted solution depending on what their needs are. That flexibility combined with the combined security intelligence of the two platforms all adds up to a great deal for the customer.

About Roy Tuvey

Roy has served as President and Board Director of ScanSafe since 1999. He founded the company’s operations in North America and is responsible for ScanSafe’s key strategic alliances.

Prior to co-founding ScanSafe, Roy gained experience in business and finance during a career in global private equity and investment banking. He originated, executed and managed investments while at Compass Partners, a $1 billion European private equity fund. Previously, Roy was part of the investment banking team at Merrill Lynch where he provided leading global companies and governments with financial advice in relation to strategic transactions.

Roy has a BSc in Economics from the University of Bristol.

About Eldar Tuvey

Eldar has served as Chief Executive Officer and Board Director of ScanSafe since 1999, is responsible for creating the global leader in SaaS Web security, and continues to drive the company’s strategic direction and growth.

Prior to co-founding ScanSafe, Eldar gained extensive business and finance experience during a career in investment banking. Previously employed at Goldman, Sachs & Co. in London and Hong Kong, he advised on numerous international financing and merger related projects within the Corporate Finance division.

Eldar completed his MBA at INSEAD and holds a BSc in Economics.

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