Zetetic

What Zetetic does

Zetetic LLC is a privately held U.S. software company specializing in applied data security, operating from Bridgewater, United States with a team of 1–10 employees and bootstrapped ownership under founder Stephen Lombardo. The company develops two core products: SQLCipher, a full database encryption library for SQLite that adds 256-bit AES encryption with optional FIPS 140-3 validated cryptographic modules across iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux, .NET, Cordova, React Native, and JDBC; and Codebook, a cross-platform password manager (iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, plus Linux via Wine) that uses SQLCipher to encrypt credential data locally with user-held keys. SQLCipher ships in Community (open source), Commercial, and Enterprise editions, with Enterprise adding SLA-backed support, flexible licensing, and exclusive platform packages; Codebook ships as a free personal edition and a $5/user/month Codebook for Business subscription that includes Codebook Cloud sync and consolidated billing.

Zetetic monetizes primarily through quote-based SQLCipher licensing (per-app, per-platform, suite, and redistribution options), multi-year Enterprise agreements with optional FIPS 140-3 modules, and recurring Codebook for Business subscriptions. Distribution combines self-serve channels (GitHub, AAR, Swift Package Manager, NuGet, app stores) with direct enterprise sales via [email protected] and dedicated email support. Customer logos including Abbott, Frost Bank, IBM, Microsoft, Siemens, and Welldoc embed SQLCipher in their applications, reaching millions of end users; "hundreds of organizations" trust Zetetic's software and frameworks globally. The go-to-market operates in parallel motions: a product-led growth funnel through the open-source Community Edition, enterprise field sales for FIPS- and SLA-bound buyers, and a sales-led motion for Codebook for Business.

The company has no disclosed funding, no subsidiaries or parent entities, and no M&A activity, while continuing to ship maintenance releases on a roughly six-to-eight-week cadence (SQLCipher 4.12.0 in December 2025 through 4.16.0 in May 2026), completed the FIPS 140-2 to FIPS 140-3 transition, and expanded Codebook onto Linux. Its competitive positioning rests on cryptographic depth, platform breadth, and the engineering switching costs inherent to embedding SQLCipher into production applications, rather than on scale, brand, or AI-driven differentiation.

Name

Zetetic

Legal name

Zetetic LLC

Website

https://zetetic.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Zetetic LLC is a privately held U.S. software company that develops SQLCipher, an encrypted SQLite database library with 256-bit AES and optional FIPS 140-3 modules, and Codebook, a cross-platform password manager. It serves enterprise application developers, regulated organizations, and Codebook Business teams globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bridgewater

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. SQLCipher Software Licenses: SQLCipher Commercial and Enterprise editions generate revenue through software licensing. Commercial licenses include dedicated support with priority response. Enterprise extends this with SLA guarantees. Both require license codes for each version upgrade.
2. SQLCipher Trial Program: Free 15-day trials drive conversion to Commercial and Enterprise editions. Trials include full-featured access, private support, and performance features.
3. Codebook Business Subscriptions: Codebook for Business licenses at $5/user/month (billed annually) with volume discounts available. Includes Codebook Cloud sync, onboarding support, and consolidated billing.
4. Professional Support Services: Dedicated priority email support, code review of applications, implementation guidance, troubleshooting, and consultation included with Commercial and Enterprise licenses.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Zetetic builds and licenses SQLCipher, an encrypted SQLite database library that delivers 256-bit AES full-database encryption with optional FIPS 140-3 validated cryptography across iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux, .NET, Cordova, JDBC, and React Native, plus commercial support tiers. The company also develops Codebook, a cross-platform password manager for iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows whose credential data is protected by SQLCipher and synchronized via an end-to-end encrypted Codebook Cloud service.

Product overview

Zetetic is a software company specializing in applied data security with two core products: SQLCipher encrypted database library and Codebook Password Manager. SQLCipher provides full 256-bit AES database encryption for SQLite applications across iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux, available in Commercial, Enterprise, and Community editions with optional FIPS 140-3 validated packages. Codebook is a cross-platform password manager (iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, with Linux support via Wine) that uses SQLCipher encryption to secure credential data. Codebook Cloud enables automatic sync and secure sharing across devices. The products serve millions of users in applications created by major companies including Abbott, Frost Bank, IBM, Microsoft, Siemens, and Welldoc.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SQLCipher: Full database encryption for SQLite databases. Adds strong data security to iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, or Linux applications with 256-bit AES encryption and FIPS 140-3 options.
• Codebook
• Codebook Cloud

Products and services

• SQLCipher Encrypted Database Full-database encryption library for SQLite that adds 256-bit AES encryption and optional FIPS 140-3 validated cryptography to iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux applications. Available in Community (open source), Commercial, and Enterprise editions, with platform variants for .NET, Cordova, JDBC, and React Native, and optional FIPS 140-3 packages for regulated environments.
• Codebook Password Manager Cross-platform password manager that has helped users securely store and manage credentials for over 25 years. Credential data is protected by SQLCipher encryption and accessible only on the user's devices, with full control of encryption keys, and available for iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows. Linux compatibility is supported through Wine with limited availability.
• Codebook for Business Organization licensing program for Codebook password manager, providing Codebook Cloud subscriptions, consolidated billing, a user management dashboard, volume discounts, onboarding support, and permission-based sharing for employees, contractors, and consultants. Pricing starts at $5/user/month billed annually.
• Codebook Cloud Subscription sync service that enables automatic cross-device synchronization of Codebook encrypted password data and secure sharing between Codebook Cloud users, integrated with Codebook for iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows.
• Enterprise FIPS Packages Optional add-on FIPS 140-3 validated cryptographic module packages for SQLCipher, available across Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android platforms, required for government contractors and regulated environments.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 4x faster encryption operations compared to Community Edition
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature9 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Keeper Security: Keeper provides password management and secrets vaulting for enterprises with zero-knowledge architecture, competing with Codebook for Business in regulated and team deployments.
• LastPass: LastPass is a mainstream password manager with business and team plans, competing with Codebook on cross-platform sync, sharing, and admin controls for organizations.
• Dashlane: Dashlane offers consumer and business password management with SSO and credential sharing, directly overlapping Codebook for Business in team-oriented credential workflows.
• 1Password: 1Password is a leading commercial password manager for consumers and teams, directly competing with Zetetic's Codebook product on cross-platform credential storage and team/business sharing.
• Bitwarden: Bitwarden is an open-source password manager with paid business tiers that competes directly with Codebook's free-individual / paid-business model, and shares a similar open-core GTM motion to SQLCipher.

Broad incumbents

• HashiCorp Vault: HashiCorp Vault is a broad secrets management and encryption platform used by enterprises for key management, encryption-as-a-service, and credential storage — overlapping SQLCipher Enterprise and Codebook for Business in adjacent but more infrastructure-focused use cases.
• AWS Key Management Service (KMS): AWS KMS is a cloud-native key management and encryption service that addresses many of the same data-at-rest protection requirements that SQLCipher Enterprise targets for cloud and hybrid applications.
• Microsoft Azure Key Vault: Azure Key Vault is Microsoft's cloud key management and secrets service, competing broadly with Zetetic's Enterprise encryption offering for enterprises standardized on the Azure stack.

Emerging players

• Realm (MongoDB): Realm is an embedded mobile database with built-in encryption that overlaps with SQLCipher's role as an encrypted local data store for iOS/Android developers, but is part of a broader sync-focused platform.
• Google Tink: Google Tink is an open-source multi-language cryptographic library that competes with parts of SQLCipher's developer-facing encryption toolkit, particularly for teams already invested in the Google Cloud ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TeamZetetic
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/zetetic_2

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Zetetic