What IOActive does

IOActive is a privately held, research-led cybersecurity consulting firm founded in 1998 and headquartered in Seattle, with operations in the United States, United Kingdom, and Spain. The firm provides professional security services to enterprise clients across critical infrastructure, energy, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, media and entertainment, retail and consumer products, technology, telecommunications, and transportation (aviation, maritime, rail, vehicle, and autonomous). Its services include full-stack security assessments, secure development lifecycle consulting, red team and purple team engagements, AI/ML security, supply chain integrity auditing, silicon and hardware security, advisory services, training, the OCP S.A.F.E. framework, and OSINT threat simulation for high-value targets. The firm also maintains open-source tooling such as the AndBug Android debugger.

The underlying technical capability spans hardware, software, firmware, and silicon, including rare techniques such as focused ion beam (FIB) and probing for extracting secrets from microcontrollers and chips. Researchers have produced high-profile disclosures including the AMD Sinkclose vulnerability, Boeing 787 avionics attack paths, Tesla NFC relay attack research, Raspberry Pi RP2350 antifuse extraction, and vulnerabilities in Panasonic Avionics in-flight entertainment systems. The firm holds Cyber Essentials Plus certification and its proprietary OCP S.A.F.E. assessment framework, and has accumulated industry recognition including ACQ5 Global Awards, Cyber Security Excellence Awards, Global Infosec Awards, SC Media designations, and a 2014 Gartner Cool Vendor ranking.

IOActive generates revenue through professional services engagements sold via a consultative, enterprise field-sales motion. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The firm is led by CEO Jennifer Sunshine Steffens, Founder and Chairman Joshua Pennell, and CTO Cesar Cerrudo, and is independently owned with no disclosed institutional investors, subsidiaries, or M&A activity. Its go-to-market leverages research output, conference presence (Black Hat, DEF CON), media coverage, and direct enterprise engagement to drive demand across both Fortune 500 and small/mid-sized business segments.

Name

IOActive

Legal name

IOActive Inc.

Website

https://ioactive.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

IOActive is a privately held, research-led cybersecurity consulting firm founded in 1998 that provides hardware, software, firmware, and silicon security assessments, penetration testing, and advisory services to enterprises across critical infrastructure, healthcare, transportation, technology, and financial services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cybersecurity Consulting Services

NAICS

Other Computer Related Services (541519), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)

akta.pro primary industry

OT/ICS & Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity Services (BPAKAHAN)

Keywords

• Penetration testing services
• Cybersecurity consulting
• Hardware security assessment
• Red team services
• Silicon security research

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Professional Security Consulting Services: IOActive generates revenue through professional services engagements including penetration testing, security assessments, red team and purple team exercises, secure development lifecycle services, and specialized security consulting. The firm provides both technical and programmatic security services to enterprise clients across multiple industries.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

IOActive is a research-led cybersecurity consultancy that sells professional security services to enterprise clients, including full-stack security assessments, penetration testing, red team and purple team exercises, secure development lifecycle consulting, AI/ML security, supply chain integrity audits, silicon and hardware reverse engineering, advisory services, and security training. Engagements are sold directly to organizations under quote-based pricing and delivered by teams of specialist security researchers.

Product overview

IOActive is a research-led cybersecurity consulting firm offering professional security services rather than a product-based company. The core offering consists of service engagements including Full Stack Security Assessments, Secure Development Lifecycle integration, Red Team/Purple Team Services, AI/ML Security Services, Supply Chain Integrity, Silicon Security (hardware reverse engineering), Advisory Services, Training, OCP S.A.F.E., and OSINT Threat Simulation. Additionally, IOActive has released open-source tools such as the AndBug Android Debugger. The firm operates across multiple industries including Critical Infrastructure, Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Technology, Telecommunications, and Transportation (including Aviation, Maritime, Rail, Vehicle, and Autonomous Vehicle sectors).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Full Stack Security Assessments Comprehensive security testing service covering all layers of technology infrastructure from applications to hardware, sold to enterprise clients seeking end-to-end assessment coverage.
• Secure Development Lifecycle Security services integrated into software development processes to identify and remediate vulnerabilities during design, development, and deployment phases, for engineering organizations building secure products.
• Red Team and Purple Team Services Offensive security testing engagement where red teams simulate real attacks and purple teams combine offensive and defensive perspectives, sold to enterprise security teams validating their detection and response capabilities.
• AI/ML Security Services Specialized security assessments for AI and machine learning systems, intended for organizations deploying AI/ML solutions that require protection from concept through deployment and compliance with industry standards.
• Supply Chain Integrity Security services ensuring the integrity and trustworthiness of product supply chains from development through distribution, for organizations that need to audit third-party and upstream component risk.
• Silicon Security Hardware and semiconductor security assessment service that includes reverse engineering and security analysis of integrated circuits and microcontrollers, serving semiconductor vendors and device manufacturers.
• Advisory Services Strategic security consulting and advisory services for organizations seeking expert guidance on cybersecurity strategy, program maturity, and risk decisions at the executive level.
• Training Security training programs for organizations and security professionals to enhance cybersecurity knowledge and skills across offensive, defensive, and specialized topics.
• OCP S.A.F.E. Proprietary security assessment framework specifically designed for open compute and infrastructure technologies, delivered as an engagement for OCP-adjacent hardware vendors and operators.
• OSINT Threat Simulation for High-Value Targets Open-source intelligence-based threat simulation service focusing on high-value targets and executive protection, sold to enterprises requiring exposure assessment of key personnel.

Quantifiable outcome

• Billions Protected across thousands of client engagements over 25+ years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• CrowdStrike Services: Endpoint security product giant with a substantial professional services arm offering incident response, red team, and proactive security assessments. Comparable to IOActive in red team and offensive security engagements, though the broader product franchise drives scale and differentiation.
• Optiv: Large US cybersecurity solutions integrator offering advisory, implementation, and managed security services to enterprise clients. Comparable to IOActive in enterprise advisory services but operates more as a broad reseller/integrator than a research-led security consultancy.
• Mandiant: Acquired by Google Cloud, Mandiant is a leading incident response and security consulting firm with deep research credibility (FireEye/Mandiant Labs). Comparable to IOActive as a research-led security services firm but with substantially larger scale and stronger incident response DNA.
• Trustwave: Global cybersecurity firm offering managed detection and response, penetration testing, and security consulting across enterprise customers. Comparable to IOActive in professional security services overlap but with a much larger portfolio including managed services that IOActive does not emphasize.

Direct peers

• Trail of Bits: Research-led cybersecurity firm known for deep technical assessments, tool development, and conference-grade security research in cryptography, blockchain, and software security. Highly comparable to IOActive for its research-driven culture, academic-adjacent reputation, and enterprise-focused advisory practice.
• Atredis Partners: Boutique US cybersecurity consultancy offering penetration testing, IoT/embedded security, and research-driven assessments. Comparable to IOActive in boutique scale and emphasis on embedded systems and hardware security engagements with enterprise and product vendors.
• NCC Group: UK-headquartered global cybersecurity consulting firm offering penetration testing, red teaming, and hardware/software security research across critical infrastructure, financial services, and technology. One of the most direct global comparables to IOActive in terms of research-led, full-stack security services with a hardware/OT emphasis.
• Kudelski Security: Switzerland-based cybersecurity consulting arm of the Kudelski Group with strong capabilities in hardware and chip security assessments alongside enterprise security services. Directly comparable to IOActive given shared focus on silicon/hardware security and media/entertainment client overlap.
• Bishop Fox: US-based boutique cybersecurity consultancy specializing in offensive security, penetration testing, and emerging technology assessments with a strong research-first brand. Closely comparable to IOActive in customer profile (Fortune 500 enterprises), boutique scale, and emphasis on cutting-edge security research.

Emerging players

• HackerOne: Bug bounty and vulnerability disclosure platform that competes for a portion of vulnerability discovery and pentesting budgets. Comparable to IOActive as a buyer channel for offensive security outcomes, though operating a crowdsourced model versus IOActive's boutique curated researcher team.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/IOActive
• GitHubgithub.com/swdunlop/AndBug
• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=zqTWamqSr0E
• Facebookfacebook.com/IOActive
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ioactive-inc

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about IOActive