CYPFER launches Cynturion Group with ex-spies

Cybersecurity firm CYPFER is spinning up a new proactive security division, Cynturion Group, staffed exclusively with former operators from elite military and intelligence units. The move signals a high-stakes bet that traditional penetration testing is dead and that the only way to fight state-sponsored hackers is to think and act like them.

The new group, announced today, aims to move corporate clients "decisively left of breach," according to CYPFER CEO Daniel Tobok. Instead of running scheduled, static tests, Cynturion’s operators will continuously emulate the behaviors and methods of real-world adversaries, from cybercriminal gangs to nation-state groups. The goal is to find and fix vulnerabilities before they result in the multi-million dollar breaches that have become commonplace.

From the battlefront to the boardroom

Cynturion is a direct response to what CYPFER Executive Chairman Jason Hogg calls the "unrestricted nature of the attacks" facing companies today. The pitch is simple: standard network security checks are no longer enough to stop attackers who blend digital and physical tactics. Cynturion’s team, sourced from the front lines of cyber warfare, is being positioned as the only group equipped to advise C-suites on these hybrid threats.

Leading the new unit is Erin Whitmore, a former CIA case officer with over 16 years in intelligence and cyber operations. "Our clients face hybrid threats that don’t wait for quarterly tests," Whitmore said in the announcement. "Cynturion mirrors real adversaries, continuously, so we can expose gaps early."

By branding its operators as veterans of the cyber battlefront, CYPFER is marketing a new level of assurance it calls "Cyber Certainty™." It’s a premium, aggressive play for high-net-worth clients and boardrooms spooked by an endless tsunami of sophisticated cyberattacks.