An Australian cyber security company has recorded a major milestone after helping launch USD $1 billion worth of initial coin offerings (ICOs) around the world without a single hack or lost token value.
For the last ten months, Entersoft has helped 30 companies through its “one-stop shop” security support service for ICOs.
This service extends beyond standard penetration testing to also include anti-phishing and wallet, operations and smart contract security. The company also puts in place measures to reduce the risk of false reputational attacks on ICO sponsors.
Entersoft co-founder and CEO Mohan Gandhi said there was extremely strong demand for ICO cybersecurity services. He said his company arguably had more fintech and blockchain clients than any other cybersecurity company in Australia.
“According to some estimates, over USD $400 million has been lost from ICO hacks since 2015 The majority of the hacks happen due to phishing scams through fake URLs and social media accounts, a lack of security around token sale websites or through smart contracts flaws being exposed. We have been able to successfully shut down these scams in all ICOs we have supported.”
Entersoft supported Australian blockchain startup Havven which in March 2018 raised $39 million in what is regarded as Australia’s largest ICO.
As Havven’s Vice-President of Partnerships Jordan Momtazi reported on 16 March, Entersoft helped shut down scam sites relating to his company’s ICO, including 24 phishing sites and 17 Medium pages.
Furthermore, on March 22nd, UK-based virtual and augmented reality company ImmVRse announced it was using Entersoft to provide cybersecurity for its upcoming token sale.
First launched in 2014, Entersoft employs ‘white hat’ hackers, some with ex-military intelligence backgrounds, who use their collective 40 years’ of experience to secure ICOs well ahead of a launch.
Mr. Gandhi says the Australian Government should work with the fintech and cybersecurity industries to encourage people to come to the country to undertake ICO fund-raises:
“With its highly-regarded financial services regulation and other fintech-friendly policies, Australia should be a natural world destination for ICOs. Other countries have generally adopted a neutral or hostile position to ICOs, while Australia has laid out a roadmap for how they can be undertaken. ICO fund-raises can bring significant investment into Australia, as they generally require cybersecurity and legal support, along with the need to construct a white paper and build technology platforms.”
In January 2018, Chinese-based startup InvestDigital raised US$23 million in an Australian-based ICO. The legal advisor for this fundraising said: “Australian regulators are particularly well informed in relation to cryptocurrencies and seem to have put more resources into understanding this sector than others.”
Entersoft received its big break in 2016 when it was the only Australian company selected to take part in the prestigious Hong Kong-based SuperCharger FinTech 2.0 accelerator program, which helps promising start-ups and scale-ups grow in Asia.
After graduating from the three-month accelerator program, the company began working with around 100 fintechs from Hong Kong and Singapore and opened an office in Hong Kong. Entersoft’s head office is in Brisbane, Australia.
Apart from ICO support, Entersoft continues to offer a range of cybersecurity support services, with a focus on the fintech and banking community.