TECHNOLOGY

Austin cybersecurity firm Forcepoint steps into behavioral science research

Nicole Cobler
ncobler@statesman.com

Austin-based cybersecurity firm Forcepoint said Tuesday it has created a research division called X-Labs, which will combine security expertise with behavioral science research.

X-Labs teams will be distributed globally with teams in Austin, Baltimore, San Diego, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Finland, according to a news release.

Teams will combine security researchers with data scientists, psychologists and counter-intelligence specialists with the goal of understanding people and their cyber behaviors, according to the company.

"Forcepoint's unique approach to cybersecurity delivers insights built on behavioral intelligence," chief technology officer Nicolas Fischbach said in a written statement. "Delivered within a privacy-by-design process, these behavioral insights have never been integrated into security products before."

Margaret Cunningham, a principal research scientist at Forcepoint, is one of X-Labs' Austin-based leads, according to a Forcepoint spokeswoman.

The X-Labs team will use data insights from Forcepoint's product portfolio to provide risk-adaptive security solutions, the company said.

Forcepoint expects the team to deliver more effective cybersecurity solutions to its customers by using behavioral intelligence insights into human and machine behavior.

The company employs roughly 2,700 people globally and jumped from zero Austin employees in 2014 to 500 employees by the end of 2018. Forcepoint doesn't have plans to slow down in Austin, Heath Thompson, senior vice president and general manager of enterprise security, told the American-Statesman last month.

Forcepoint was created in 2016, a rebranding of the company formerly known as Websense. That entity had been formed in 2015 when defense contractor Raytheon paid $1.9 billion to purchase Websense, a cybersecurity company that moved to Austin from California in 2014. Raytheon is Forcepoint's primary shareholder.

And it's one of a growing number of cybersecurity firms in Austin.

READ MORE: Is Austin a cybersecurity hub? Depends who you ask.

Although it’s up for debate where the city’s cybersecurity future stands, startups, the largest tech employers, higher education institutions and even the military have made headlines in recent years for prioritizing information security — the wider net that includes cybersecurity and the protection and maintenance of data.

Publicly traded SailPoint Technologies has roughly the same number of employees in Austin as Forcepoint, and a growing number of security startups have popped up around town in recent years.

Thompson, the Forcepoint senior vice president, said the company hasn't had any trouble getting top talent to come to Austin.

"The cybersecurity landscape is growing nicely here," Thompson said. "Austin's already a popular destination with a lot of young up-in-coming professionals. I think when you couple that with the mission at Forcepoint, it makes it even more attractive."