What Aphinia does

Aphinia is a private, New York-based community platform operating a by-invitation-only network of CISOs and other senior cybersecurity executives (C-, VP-, and Director-level). The core product is a tiered membership (Member, Elite Member, Ambassador) that grants free access to a weekly CISO Wire newsletter, a searchable membership database, a private discussion board, salary benchmarking reports, private job opportunities, quarterly mastermind calls, and exclusive business and social events, in exchange for escalating annual time contributions of 2, 5, or 10 hours per year.

The underlying technology is a conventional community stack — a membership database, a private discussion board, and Slack-based communication channels — rather than a differentiated product platform. Monetization does not flow from membership fees (which are zero) but from a separately marketed suite of four vendor and startup programs: Ideate (pre-seed discovery sprints with senior corporate decision-makers), Activate (seed/A-round demo opportunities), Propagate (CISO access for early-stage cyber VCs), and Educate (thought leadership distribution for midsize and enterprise security vendors). Pricing for these programs is not publicly disclosed.

Member recruitment is word-of-mouth and invitation-driven, supplemented by events (RSA Conference, virtual webinars like 'Conversations with #DrCybersecurity') and a podcast. The member roster spans 38+ named enterprises across financial services, technology, consumer goods, telecommunications, retail, automotive, aerospace, and nonprofit sectors. The company appears founder/operator-led, with Misha Sobolev as Director of Community and Amy Minnie as Head of Content, complemented by a 12-person CISO advisory board. No external investors, funding rounds, or parent company relationships are disclosed.

Name

Aphinia

Legal name

Aphinia, Inc.

Website

https://aphinia.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Aphinia operates a by-invitation-only community for CISOs and senior cybersecurity executives, offering tiered membership with networking, benchmarking, and events, and monetizes through paid vendor and startup engagement programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Networking and Community Services for Cybersecurity Executives

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Live Audio Q&A, Coaching & Mentorship Platforms (MPACAEAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Succession Planning & High-Potential (HiPo) Leadership Programs (EDABAAAL)

Keywords

• Cybersecurity community
• CISO networking
• Executive peer groups
• Cybersecurity vendor programs
• Professional membership services

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Vendor and Startup Engagement Programs: Aphinia generates revenue through vendor-facing programs including Ideate (for pre-seed startups), Activate (for early-stage startups), Propagate (for cyber VCs), and Educate (for midsize and enterprise cybersecurity companies). These programs offer access to the CISO community in exchange for program fees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Aphinia operates a by-invitation-only community platform for CISOs and senior cybersecurity executives, offering free tiered membership (Member, Elite Member, Ambassador) with progressively enhanced networking, benchmarking, mastermind, and event benefits in exchange for annual time contributions. For the vendor ecosystem, Aphinia runs four paid programs — Ideate (pre-seed discovery conversations), Activate (early-stage demos), Propagate (VC portfolio support), and Educate (thought leadership for midsize and enterprise cybersecurity vendors) — providing curated access to its CISO network.

Product overview

Aphinia is a by-invitation-only community platform for CISOs and senior cybersecurity executives. The offering consists of three membership tiers (Member, Elite Member, and Ambassador) providing progressively enhanced access to networking, career resources, and exclusive events. For vendors and startups, Aphinia offers four programs: Ideate (pre-seed discovery), Activate (early-stage demos), Propagate (VC network access), and Educate (thought leadership). The platform operates as a networking and knowledge-sharing community rather than a technology product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Member (Free) Basic free membership tier providing access to the Aphinia CISO community, including the weekly CISO Wire newsletter, membership database for networking, and a private discussion board for real-time peer feedback.
• Elite Member (Free) Mid-tier free membership (5 hours/year contribution) offering all basic benefits plus salary benchmarking reports, private job opportunities, and quarterly CISO Mastermind calls.
• Ambassador (Free) Top-tier free membership (10 hours/year contribution) offering all Elite benefits plus access to exclusive private business and social events.
• Ideate Paid program for pre-seed cybersecurity startups delivering 10 discovery conversations with senior corporate decision makers over a two-week sprint to support early product/customer validation.
• Activate Paid program for seed/A-round cybersecurity startups providing demo opportunities with senior corporate decision makers to help achieve product/market fit and earn early customer logos.
• Propagate Paid program for early-stage cybersecurity VCs providing portfolio companies with access to a network of CISOs and C-/VP-/Director-level cybersecurity executives for portfolio value-add.
• Educate Paid thought leadership series for midsize and enterprise cybersecurity companies that channels vendor insights to high-value potential clients on demand and at scale.

Named customers27 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Evanta (a Gartner company): Evanta runs invitation-only executive communities for CIOs, CISOs, and other C-suite leaders, with comparable governance summits, peer networking events, and vendor-sponsored programming. It is the most directly comparable model to Aphinia, operating at significantly larger scale under Gartner's umbrella.
• Cybersecurity Collaborative: Cybersecurity Collaborative is a peer community built specifically for CISOs and senior security leaders, offering mastermind groups, peer benchmarking, and events — directly overlapping Aphinia's target persona and value proposition.
• CISO Series: CISO Series produces podcasts, blogs, and events targeted at CISOs and security vendors, including sponsored content programs. It is a more media-led peer to Aphinia, competing for the same audience attention and vendor sponsorship dollars.
• FS-ISAC: FS-ISAC is an industry-specific information sharing and analysis community for financial sector CISOs and security teams. It overlaps with Aphinia on CISO networking and threat-intel collaboration but is sector-specific and serves many of the same financial services members.

Emerging players

• IAPP (International Association of Privacy Professionals): IAPP is a global membership association for privacy professionals, offering certifications, conferences, and peer communities. It serves an adjacent executive function (Chief Privacy Officers) and competes for the same corporate security leadership mindshare.

Broad incumbents

• (ISC)²: (ISC)² is the largest global membership association for cybersecurity professionals, offering certifications (CISSP), member communities, and continuing education. It operates at vastly larger scale than Aphinia but serves an overlapping audience of security practitioners and executives.
• ISSA (Information Systems Security Association): ISSA is a longstanding international nonprofit association for cybersecurity professionals, providing local chapter meetings, conferences, and member networking. It competes for the same professional-development mindshare as Aphinia but at a broader practitioner level.
• Gartner: Gartner is the parent of Evanta and the dominant research and advisory firm serving CISOs. Its conferences (Gartner Security & Risk Management Summit) and advisory relationships give it unmatched distribution advantages that Aphinia must compete against for vendor mindshare.

Others

• ISMG (Information Security Media Group): ISMG operates a large portfolio of cybersecurity media properties, events, and executive roundtables targeting CISOs and security leaders. It overlaps with Aphinia in serving as an information and networking channel for senior security executives but is a media company rather than a peer community.
• SecureWorld: SecureWorld runs regional cybersecurity conferences and networking events across North America, targeting the same CISO and security leadership audience as Aphinia. It overlaps on the events and peer-connection axis but lacks the by-invitation-only membership community structure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Aphinia