Every company, no matter what size or industry, has recognized the need for security measures. But what should be put in place if the threat is coming from down the hall? Mountain View-based Reconnex was formed to answer that question. CEO Don Massaro talks about starting from scratch, and shutting the back door.

How did Reconnex get started?

Last May, I literally moved cars out of my garage in Atherton, Calif., went to Home Depot to buy lumber for a table where we set up four computers, moved in two old leather couches and there you have it-I started my fifth venture-backed company. From the outset, I pulled together a group of professionals with a long-standing history and positive reputation in the security space. They were all committed to finding a solution that addressed the next wave in information security-the insider threat. In the process of getting funding, I was introduced to Ratinder Ahuja, now our CTO, who had a similar vision but his experience was in building high-speed content switches. We immediately realized the positive synergism we would have if we combined his engineering expertise with our expertise in sales and marketing.

Why do you feel there's a need for what you provide?

There is a huge need right now for companies to protect their confidential information. If they haven't done so already, every CEO should sit down with their Chief Information Security Officer or CIO and ask one important question: What are we doing to stop confidential information from leaking out the backdoor of our network? Companies need to monitor their IT networks and immediately recognize when critical/confidential information has left corporate networks to stop the damage before it's too late. And on the flip side, they need solutions that can address all the legal fallout issues from internal security breaches if they do occur.

With so many network security options available, what makes you unique?

Reconnex is different from the other security vendors because we focus on the insider threat. Our approach to address this threat is unique because we built a hardware appliance designed for gigabit network performance and scalability. No one has thought of building a plug and play hardware appliance with the capability to reconstruct the information flowing over the corporate network to make a positive identification on things like intellectual property exposures. The Reconnex appliance allows administrators to examine the actual content that is transmitted by internal personnel and provides them with a contextual understanding of suspicious activity, so that they can verify malicious or accidental behavior that puts the company at risk. In addition, it provides legal grade evidence that can help them successfully pursue legal action against wrong-doers.

What kind of reaction do you get from customers about your products?

Our customers are actually shocked when they realize that within seconds of turning the appliance on they see their confidential information flowing out of their network unprotected. They see credit card numbers, privacy data, resumes and communication with competitors in the first 24 to 48 hours. What we hear over and over again is, "The problem was worse then we thought." Many of our customers are information security officers who have been unable to sleep at night because they feared this type of information was leaving their networks but they couldn't see; they couldn't confirm it. By using our solution, the can see the risks and address them head-on in the first 48 hours.

Do you know a Bay Area company we should cover? Let us know about it. Send your local profile candidates to Elizabeth Millard at emillard@computeruser.com.