Neal Creighton

Neal Creighton is an American entrepreneur based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. He was one of the co-founders and CEO of certificate authority GeoTrust in 2001, and is co-inventor of the domain-validated certificate patent issued in 2006 which method accounts for 70 percent of all SSL certificates on the Internet.[1][2] In 2006, GeoTrust was the 2nd largest certificate authority in the world with 26.7 percent market share according to independent survey company Netcraft.[3] He was also cofounder of RatePoint, Inc., which was named the MITX 2010 Social Media Company of the Year for New England.[4]

Neal Creighton
Born
Neal Creighton

Panama Canal Zone, Panama
NationalityAmerican
CitizenshipAmerican
Alma mater
OccupationPresident and CEO of CounterTack, Inc.
Known for

Creighton currently serves as President and CEO of CounterTack, Inc., a security software firm that focuses on preventing cyber-attacks.[5]

Early life and education

Creighton's father, Neal Creighton, Sr. was a career military officer and Major General in the United States Army known for his service during the Tet Offensive of 1968.[6]

The younger Creighton attended US Army Ranger School[7] and West Point, and served for five years as an officer in the United States Army. He was an armor platoon leader and saw action during the Gulf War. Creighton was referenced by Seymour Hersh in his controversial New Yorker article, “Overwhelming Force” for his part in battle for Jalibah Airfield that took place on February 27, 1991.[8] After his service in the Army, Creighton attended Northwestern University, where he received a Juris Doctor and an MBA.[9]

Career

Equifax and GeoTrust

In the late 1990s, Creighton focused his work in fields of information security.[7] He began his career by cofounding GeoTrust in 2001. Creighton led the efforts to raise $24 million in venture financing to fund the project, and he and his partners acquired the security branch of Equifax.[7]

GeoTrust automated the identification verification of organizations, and computers over the Internet inventing the domain-validated certificate method.[10][2][11] In 2006, GeoTrust was the 2nd largest certificate authority in the world with 26.7 percent market share according to independent survey company Netcraft.[3] [12]

GeoTrust was sold to VeriSign in September 2006 for $125 million, and the brand was acquired by Symantec as part of its $1.28 billion acquisition of VeriSign's security business in 2010.[13]

ChosenSecurity and AffirmTrust

After GeoTrust, Creighton also served as CEO of ChosenSecurity, which was acquired by PGP Corporation (which was later acquired by Symantec).[14] Creighton was also cofounder and executive chairman of AffirmTrust LLC, which was acquired by Trend Micro in 2011.[15]

CounterTack, Inc.

Creighton currently serves as President and CEO of CounterTack, Inc., a real-time security software company that focuses on preventing cyber-attacks and managing Internet threats.[16] The Massachusetts-based company was formed in 2011 and has since raised $90 million in venture capital financing.[17] Creighton also serves on the advisory board of the US Army Cyber Institute.[18]

Ratepoint controversy

Creighton was the CEO and founder of Ratepoint, an email marketing firm, that raised $25 million in venture financing. He left Ratepoint in 2011 to pursue "other opportunities".[19] The company sold its email marketing business within a year to Constant Contact and its rating business was discontinued. By 2013, Creighton was chairman at Robly, a competitor to Ratepoint, which is an email marketing firm based out of New York City.[20][21]

Awards and recognition

Creighton is the co-inventor of the domain-validated certificate patent granted in 2006, and was issued a patent in 2010 for a system that provides secure identity and uniform resource identifier verification.[22] Creighton was a Massachusetts High Tech All Star in 2010, received the 40 Under 40 award in New England, was a three-time Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year finalist, and was awarded the 2007 Sale Side Deal of the Year for New England award from Massachusetts High Tech.[23][24]

References
  1. Keith Regan (May 15, 2006). "GeoTrust CEO Neal Creighton on the Quest for Stronger Online Trust". E-Commerce Times. Tech News World. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  2. √https://www.netcraft.com/internet-data-mining/ssl-survey/
  3. "VeriSign To Buy GeoTrust, Combining Top SSL Providers". Netcraft News.
  4. "RatePoint Recognized For Social Media Excellence At The 2010 MITX Technology Awards". TheStreet, Inc. June 4, 2010. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  5. "RatePoint helps manage companies' online reputations". Boston Business Journal. June 22, 2009. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  6. "2005 Distinguished Graduate Award". West Point. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  7. "Neal Creighton CEO, RatePoint, Inc". iMedia Connection. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  8. Hersh, Seymour M. "Overwhelming Force". The New Yorker.
  9. https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/mass-high-tech/2010/10/mht-all-star-neal-creighton-driven-visionary.html
  10. "ChosenSecurity CEO Neal Creighton Named a Finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award in New England". Sys-Con Media. April 25, 2007. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  11. "Top SSL Certificates Buyer's Guide". PCMAG.
  12. Erin Joyce (March 3, 2006). "Neal Creighton, CEO, GeoTrust". Internet News. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  13. Joris Evers (May 17, 2006). "VeriSign nabs GeoTrust". CNET. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  14. "PGP Corporation acquires TC TrustCenter and ChosenSecurity". Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  15. Don Seiffert (June 27, 2012). "AffirmTrust acquired by billion-dollar Japanese company". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  16. Don Seiffert (January 18, 2013). "CounterTack gets first patent for cyber attack protection software". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  17. Kelly O'Brien (May 30, 2017). "Waltham cybersecurity firm CounterTack tacks on $20M from strategic investors". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
  18. "Advisors". cyber.army.mil.
  19. https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/mass-high-tech/2011/03/ex-carbonite-exec-cooper-in-as-ratepoint.html
  20. https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/techflash/2013/05/former-ratepoint-customers-launch.html
  21. Trends, Small Business. "RatePoint Customer Reviews Service Shutting Down". Business Insider.
  22. "Methods and Systems for Automated Authentication, Processing and Issuance of Digital Certificates". Google Patents. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  23. "Finalists for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award Announced in New England; Award Recipients Named at Gala Event". BusinessWire. June 15, 2006. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  24. "West Point Society of New England Newsletter" (PDF). West Point. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
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