SpiderOak

{{Infobox company

| name = SpiderOak Inc.

| logo =

| logo_size = 250 px

| industry = Computer security

| founded = 2006

| hq_location = Reston Town Center

| hq_location_city = Fairfax County, Virginia

| hq_location_country = United States

| num_locations_year =

| area_served = United States

| key_people = {{Unbulleted list|Executive Chairman Charles Beames|CEO David Pearah}}

| products = OrbitSecure

| brands =

| services = {{Unbulleted list|Software|Satellite mesh networking security|Zero-trust architecture}}

| website = {{url|spideroak.com/}}

| footnotes =

| embed =

}}

SpiderOak Inc. is a US-based software company focused on satellite cybersecurity.

The company began in 2006 as a producer of a collaboration tool, online backup and file hosting service that allows users to access and share data using a cloud-based server.{{cite web |url=https://spideroak.com/service_agreement |title=SpiderOak Service Agreement |publisher=SpiderOak |accessdate=June 9, 2013}}{{cite web |url=https://spideroak.com/fiveservicesinone |title=Spideroak Service Description |publisher=SpiderOak |accessdate=June 19, 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100103193932/https://spideroak.com/fiveservicesinone |archivedate=January 3, 2010}}

SpiderOak evolved into a space cybersecurity company and first tested its software in space in June 2023.{{cite news |last1=Werner |first1=Debra |title=Beames becomes SpiderOak's chairman of the board |url=https://spacenews.com/beames-joins-spideroak/ |access-date=15 August 2023 |work=SpaceNews |date=8 March 2023}} It has partnered with Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and the Department of Defense.{{cite news |last1=Jewett |first1=Rachel |title=Lockheed Martin Partners with SpiderOak Missions Systems on Space Cybersecurity Platform |url=https://www.satellitetoday.com/cybersecurity/2022/03/29/lockheed-martin-partners-with-spideroak-missions-systems-on-space-cybersecurity-platform/ |access-date=15 August 2023 |work=Via Satellite |date=29 March 2022 |language=en}}{{cite news |last1=Jewett |first1=Rachel |title=SpiderOak Snags Investments from Accenture, Raytheon Technologies & Stellar Ventures |url=https://www.satellitetoday.com/cybersecurity/2023/05/18/spideroak-snags-investments-from-accenture-raytheon-technologies-stellar-ventures/ |access-date=15 August 2023 |work=Via Satellite |date=18 May 2023 |language=en}}

History

SpiderOak was founded in 2007 by Ethan Oberman and Alan Fairless as an encrypted private backup program.{{cite web |url=http://www.spideroak.com/about |title=About SpiderOak |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141009132517/https://spideroak.com/about/ |archivedate=2014-10-09}} In 2013, SpiderOak began developing the Crypton framework, "a JavaScript framework for building applications where the server doesn't know the contents it's storing on behalf of users."{{cite web |url=https://crypton.io/about |title=About Crypton}} Crypton is an open-source project allowing developers to easily add encryption security to mobile applications.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/2013/03/crypton/ |author=Klint Finley |title=Open Source Project Prepackages Kim Dotcom's Security |date=March 1, 2013 |magazine=Wired}} By mid-2014, according to Oberman, SpiderOak had near 1 million users.{{cite news |last1=Yadron |first1=Danny |last2=MacMillan |first2=Douglas |title=Snowden Says Drop Dropbox, Use SpiderOak |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2014/07/17/snowden-says-drop-dropbox-use-spideroak/ |accessdate=1 September 2014 |work=WSJ.com Digits |publisher=The Wall Street Journal |date=2014-07-14}}

Its first offering, its online backup service later branded "SpiderOak ONE", launched in December 2007. SpiderOak is accessible through an app for Windows, Mac and Linux computer platforms, and Android, N900 Maemo and iOS mobile platforms.{{cite web |url=http://www.nextadvisor.com/cloud_storage/spideroak_cloud_review.php |title=SpiderOak Review: Cloud Storage reviews at |publisher=Nextadvisor.com |accessdate=2013-08-10 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130124043730/http://www.nextadvisor.com/cloud_storage/spideroak_cloud_review.php |archivedate=2013-01-24}}

According to SpiderOak, the software used encrypted cloud storage and client-side encryption key creation, so SpiderOak employees could not access users' information. SpiderOak differentiated itself from its competition by this kind of encryption,{{cite web |url=https://arstechnica.com/business/2012/04/spideroak-dropbox-for-the-security-obsessive/ |title=SpiderOak: Dropbox for the security obsessive |date=4 April 2012 |quote=The chief difference between SpiderOak and its competitors for the security and privacy-conscious is in how the services treat user data.}} in provision for syncing files and folders across multiple devices, and in automatic de-duplication of data.{{cite web |url=http://www.linuxplanet.com/linuxplanet/reviews/6644/1/ |title=Spideroak: Secure Offsite Backups for Linux |publisher=LinuxPlanet |author=Carla Schroder |date=2009-01-22 |accessdate=2009-02-26 |archive-date=2016-06-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612213535/http://www.linuxplanet.com/linuxplanet/reviews/6644/1 |url-status=dead }}

Some components of SpiderOak ONE were open-source; in 2009, the company announced its intent for the SpiderOak ONE code to be fully open-source in the future.{{cite web |url=https://spideroak.com/engineering_matters |title=Spideroak: Engineering Matters |publisher=SpiderOak |accessdate=2009-11-04}} {{As of|2016}}, the SpiderOak One client's source code is only available open-source for mobile platforms, with no current plans to make the desktop client's code open-source.{{cite web |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005131709/https://spideroak.com/faq/why-isnt-spideroakone-open-source-yet-when-will-it-be |archivedate=2016-10-05 |url=https://spideroak.com/faq/why-isnt-spideroak-open-source-yet-when-will-it-be/ |title=Why isn't SpiderOak open source yet? When will it be? |url-status=live |accessdate=2016-10-05}} SpiderOak used to provide an open-source password manager named Encryptr, which was discontinued in March 2021.{{Cite web |url=https://github.com/SpiderOak/Encryptr |title=SpiderOak/Encryptr |website=GitHub |language=en|access-date=2017-04-24}}{{Cite web|last=Tervort|first=Adam|date=April 14, 2021|title=Encryptr End of Life|url=https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/sticky-password-premium|access-date=July 28, 2021|website=SpiderOak Support}} The source code for SpiderOak's group messaging application Semaphor is published to allow auditing.{{Cite web |url=https://spideroak.com/solutions/semaphor/source |title=Semaphor Verifiable Source |website=spideroak.com|access-date=2017-04-24}}

By 2014, SpiderOak was headquartered in Chicago and employed 42 staff, headed by CEO Alan Fairless. Around the same time, the company had offices in Chicago and Kansas City, and was hiring remote employees inside and outside of the US.{{cite web |url=https://spideroak.com/press/release/detail/40/spideroak-grows-enterprise-revenue-300-doubles-headcount |title=SpiderOak Grows Enterprise Revenue 300%, Doubles Headcount |date=December 10, 2013 |website=spideroak.com |publisher=SpiderOak |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140830145244/https://spideroak.com/press/release/detail/40/spideroak-grows-enterprise-revenue-300-doubles-headcount |archivedate=August 30, 2014}}{{cite web |url=http://siliconprairienews.com/2014/08/founder-friday-chris-cooley/ |title=Chris Cooley shares how SpiderOak's distributed team works |date=August 29, 2014 |website=Silicon Prairie News}} In 2015, SpiderOak raised $3.5 million in Series A funding, bringing its total funding to around $9 million.{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/blue-sky/ct-spideroak-series-a-bsi-20150723-story.html|title=SpiderOak raises $3.5 million to store data with 'zero knowledge'|last=Elahi|first=Amina|date=2015-07-23|website=chicagotribune.com|access-date=2019-10-07}}

In February 2017, SpiderOak discontinued using the phrase "zero knowledge" to describe their SpiderOak ONE service following public criticism that the phrase conflicted with the mechanism behind cryptographic zero-knowledge proofs. SpiderOak adopted the phrase "no knowledge" for their marketing.{{cite web |url=https://spideroak.com/articles/why-we-will-no-longer-use-the-phrase-zero-knowledge-to-describe-our-software |title=Why we will no longer use the phrase Zero Knowledge to describe our software |date=February 8, 2017 |accessdate=February 13, 2017 |website=spideroak.com |publisher=SpiderOak}}

In November 2017, founder Alan Fairless was replaced as CEO by Christopher Skinner, who announced that the company would be expanding into enterprise software, partially funded by a $2 million Series B round.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2017/11/15/spideroak-has-new-ceo-product-for-customers.html|title=SpiderOak introduces changes in top post, target customers|last=Kaberline|first=Brian|date=2017-11-15|website=Kansas City Business Journal|access-date=2019-10-07}}

David Pearah became CEO in 2020.{{cite news |title=Dave Pearah, Spideroak Inc: Profile and Biography |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/person/3463877 |access-date=29 August 2023 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}

Charles Beames became executive chairman of the company in 2022.{{cite news |last1=Werner |first1=Debra |title=Beames becomes SpiderOak's chairman of the board |url=https://spacenews.com/beames-joins-spideroak/ |work=SpaceNews |date=8 March 2022}}

In January 2023, the company raised $16.4 million in a financing round "to make a full-tilt push into building its space business."{{cite news |last1=Sheetz |first1=Michael |title=Investing in Space: Digital orbital danger |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/12/investing-in-space-digital-orbital-danger-spideroak-fundraise.html |access-date=15 August 2023 |work=CNBC |date=12 January 2023 |language=en}} In May 2023, the company received investments from the venture capital arms of Accenture, Raytheon Technologies and Stellar Ventures to "speed up the deployment of zero-trust, cybersecurity platforms for government and commercial clients operating in the space sector."{{cite news |last1=Edwards |first1=Jane |title=Accenture, Raytheon, Stellar Ventures Invest in Space Cybersecurity Company SpiderOak |url=https://www.govconwire.com/2023/05/accenture-raytheon-stellar-ventures-invest-in-space-cyber-company-spideroak/ |access-date=29 August 2023 |work=GovCon Wire |date=19 May 2023}}{{cite news |last1=Jewett |first1=Rachel |title=SpiderOak Snags Investments from Accenture, Raytheon Technologies & Stellar Ventures |url=https://www.satellitetoday.com/cybersecurity/2023/05/18/spideroak-snags-investments-from-accenture-raytheon-technologies-stellar-ventures/ |access-date=29 August 2023 |work=Via Satellite |date=18 May 2023 |language=en}}

In June 2023, the company first demonstrated its OrbitSecure cybersecurity software in space on a Ball Aerospace prototype payload.{{cite news |last1=Jewett |first1=Rachel |title=SpiderOak Demonstrates OrbitSecure Cyber Software on Ball Aerospace Satellite |url=https://www.satellitetoday.com/cybersecurity/2023/06/26/spideroak-demonstrates-orbitsecure-cyber-software-on-ball-aerospace-satellite/ |work=Via Satellite |date=26 June 2023 |language=en}}

In July 2023, the company demonstrated its OrbitSecure software on the International Space Station.{{cite news |last1=Zisk |first1=Rachael |title=SpiderOak Demonstrates Cybersecurity on the ISS |url=https://payloadspace.com/spideroak-demonstrates-cybersecurity-on-the-iss/ |access-date=29 August 2023 |work=Payload |date=29 August 2023}}

OrbitSecure

As part of a pivot to space cybersecurity, in 2021 SpiderOak moved to an increased focus on its OrbitSecure cybersecurity software. The suite of products uses encryption and distributed-ledger software to operate a decentralized key management system. The company described OrbitSecure as providing "end-to-end cybersecurity for the Department of Defense's future Hybrid Space Architecture."{{cite news |last1=Staff |first1=Startland News |title=SpiderOak raises $16.4M for space cybersecurity tech to protect ‘soft underbelly’ of satellites |url=https://www.startlandnews.com/2023/01/spideroak-2/ |access-date=28 August 2023 |work=Startland News |date=13 January 2023}}

The platform relies on containerized workloads, in which pieces of code are bundled together with all the files they need to run independently of other blocks of information. This siloing of different applications makes for more efficient and secure data processing and transmission in orbit.{{cite news |last1=Zisk |first1=Rachael |title=SpiderOak Demonstrates Cybersecurity on the ISS |url=https://payloadspace.com/spideroak-demonstrates-cybersecurity-on-the-iss/ |access-date=29 August 2023 |work=Payload |date=29 August 2023}}