Cyan Forensics
Cyan Forensics (trading as Cyacomb) provides digital forensics triage and content-safety software that helps law enforcement, social media, cloud, and encrypted messaging providers detect and block illegal content such as CSAM using its proprietary Contraband Filter technology.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersEdinburgh, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Cyan Forensics does
Cyan Forensics, trading as Cyacomb, is an Edinburgh-based digital forensics and content safety software vendor founded in 2016. The company builds tooling that enables law enforcement, social media, cloud providers, and encrypted messaging platforms to rapidly detect and block illegal and harmful digital content — primarily child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and terrorist content — at point of upload or on seized devices. Its core technology is a proprietary "Contraband Filter" that scans against original data, delivering claimed time reductions from hours to under three minutes for triage workflows.
Cyacomb operates a dual-product portfolio. Cyacomb Examiner Plus is a digital forensics triage tool sold to law enforcement agencies, with the UK National Crime Agency cited as a named user. Cyacomb Safety is a parallel product aimed at commercial organisations — social media, cloud, and encrypted messaging providers — that need to identify and block harmful content while preserving user privacy. Distribution combines direct sales (UK and US), a formal channel partner programme, and a self-serve free trial for Examiner.
Commercially, Cyacomb is a private limited company registered in Scotland (SC538756), reporting 1–10 employees, with no disclosed revenue or ARR. It has raised approximately $10.9M across six funding rounds between 2016 and 2021, including a ~$6.9M Series A in March 2021 led by Par Equity and a 2021 Safety Tech Challenge Fund award. The company holds core strategic partnerships with the Internet Watch Foundation and the US National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), and operates across EMEA and North America.
Cyan Forensics firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cyan Forensics
- Legal name
- Cyacomb Ltd
- Website
- https://cyanforensics.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Cyan Forensics (trading as Cyacomb) provides digital forensics triage and content-safety software that helps law enforcement, social media, cloud, and encrypted messaging providers detect and block illegal content such as CSAM using its proprietary Contraband Filter technology.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cyan Forensics industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Digital Forensics Software
- NAICS
- Investigation and Security Services (5616), Investigation and Personal Background Check Services (561611)
- SIC
- Services-Detective, Guard & Armored Car Services (7381)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Digital Forensics & Evidence Collection (Endpoint, Mobile, Cloud) (BPAKAHAC)
Keywords
Where Cyan Forensics is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Edinburgh
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cyan Forensics business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Cyan Forensics product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cyan Forensics (trading as Cyacomb) develops digital forensics triage software that helps law enforcement agencies, social media platforms, cloud providers, and encrypted messaging services rapidly identify and block illegal and harmful digital content. Its proprietary Contraband Filter technology scans original data at speed to flag harmful material in minutes rather than hours, while protecting database security and user privacy.
Product overview
Cyan Forensics (Cyacomb) offers a dual-product portfolio focused on digital forensics and content safety. The core offerings are Cyacomb Safety (for commercial organisations) and Cyacomb Examiner Plus (for law enforcement). Both products leverage the company's proprietary Contraband Filter technology to rapidly scan and identify harmful digital content at scale, with the law enforcement variant providing triage capabilities for suspect devices while the safety variant addresses commercial organisation needs for content blocking and protection.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Cyacomb Safety: Product for rapid identification of illegal and harmful digital content for commercial organisations.
- Cyacomb Examiner Plus
Products and services
- Cyacomb Safety Digital forensics safety product for commercial organisations that enables rapid identification and blocking of illegal or harmful digital content on their platforms, leveraging Cyan Forensics' proprietary Contraband Filter technology.
- Cyacomb Examiner Plus
Quantifiable outcome
- Results delivered in less than 3 minutes compared to 5 hours with traditional approaches
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Cyan Forensics
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Cyan Forensics technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Cyan Forensics partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Internet Watch Foundation (IWF)coreIWF partnership for detection and blocking of known child sexual abuse material. IWF has stated that Cyacomb has demonstrated this detection in E2EE environments is no longer an engineering problem.
- National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)coreNCMEC partnership - Cyacomb is recognized as a NCMEC partner, with NCMEC citing Cyacomb as an example of innovative approach to assisting law enforcement.
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cyan Forensics competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Magnet Forensics: Magnet Forensics (now combined with Grayshift under Magnet One) provides digital forensics and device triage tools to law enforcement globally. It is a direct competitor in the digital-forensics-triage category Cyacomb targets, with overlapping customers in police forces worldwide.
- MSAB: MSAB (Micro Systemation) sells XRY mobile forensic extraction and triage tools to police forces worldwide. It is a directly comparable vendor of digital forensics tooling for law enforcement, the same primary buyer as Cyacomb Examiner Plus.
- ADF Solutions: ADF Solutions provides digital forensic triage software (Digital Evidence Investigator) specifically designed to speed up on-scene and lab triage for law enforcement. It is a close direct peer in the device-triage workflow Cyacomb Examiner Plus competes in.
- Grayshift: Grayshift (GrayKey) specializes in mobile device extraction for law enforcement. It targets the same law enforcement buyers as Cyacomb and is now part of Magnet Forensics' combined platform.
- Oxygen Forensics: Oxygen Forensics develops Detective and other digital forensic solutions used by law enforcement, enterprise, and government. It is a directly comparable vendor of mobile and computer forensics tools with the same core buyer profile as Cyacomb.
Broad incumbents
- Cellebrite: Cellebrite is the dominant incumbent in mobile device forensics, serving law enforcement and enterprise customers with UFED and Premium products. While broader and larger than Cyacomb, it competes for the same law enforcement digital-forensics budget.
- AccessData (Exterro): AccessData, now part of Exterro, offers FTK (Forensic Toolkit) and other digital forensics platforms used by law enforcement and corporate investigators. It is a broader incumbent with overlapping forensics-triage capability for the same customer base.
- Microsoft PhotoDNA: Microsoft's PhotoDNA is the industry-standard hash-based CSAM detection service used by platforms and law enforcement. It is the de facto incumbent in the CSAM-detection category Cyacomb Safety competes in, though using a fundamentally different (hash-based) approach.
Emerging players
- Thorn: Thorn is a nonprofit that builds technology (e.g., Safer) to combat child sexual exploitation, partnering with platforms and law enforcement. It addresses the same mission as Cyacomb but from a nonprofit, software-and-research angle rather than commercial forensics tooling.
- ActiveFence: ActiveFence provides trust & safety and content moderation risk intelligence to online platforms, including CSAM detection. It overlaps with Cyacomb Safety's commercial-organisation segment but emphasizes broader trust & safety rather than pure forensics.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cyan Forensics social profiles
Digital presenceCyan Forensics financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cyan Forensics leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Cyan Forensics funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cyan Forensics M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cyan Forensics
What does Cyan Forensics do?
Cyan Forensics (trading as Cyacomb) develops digital forensics triage software that helps law enforcement agencies, social media platforms, cloud providers, and encrypted messaging services rapidly identify and block illegal and harmful digital content. Its proprietary Contraband Filter technology scans original data at speed to flag harmful material in minutes rather than hours, while protecting database security and user privacy.
Is Cyan Forensics a public or private company?
Cyan Forensics is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Cyan Forensics founded?
Cyan Forensics was founded in 2016. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Cyan Forensics based?
Cyan Forensics is headquartered in Edinburgh, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
Who are Cyan Forensics's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Magnet Forensics, MSAB, ADF Solutions, Grayshift and Oxygen Forensics. Broad incumbents are Cellebrite, AccessData (Exterro) and Microsoft PhotoDNA. Emerging players are Thorn and ActiveFence.
Does Cyan Forensics have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cyan Forensics.
What industry is Cyan Forensics in?
Cyan Forensics's product category is Digital Forensics Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAKAHAC, Digital Forensics & Evidence Collection (Endpoint, Mobile, Cloud). Its NAICS code is 5616 and its SIC code is 7381.