Although it's not even six months into the new year, the world has already witnessed a wave of cybersecurity breaches. These incidents have compromised significant amounts of sensitive data, including passwords, IP addresses, and unique device identifiers, affecting millions of individuals globally. While many might assume they are immune to threats, no one is entirely safe in today’s online world.
These attacks are indiscriminate, targeting individuals, organizations, businesses, and even entire nations. Israel, for example, was identified as the second most targeted country for cyberattacks in 2024. The country faced a surge in cyber threats, primarily targeting its government systems and defense networks, encompassing data breaches, ransomware, and coordinated attempts to disrupt essential services, highlighting the need for proactive defense strategies.
Despite the valuable insights they offer, penetration testing and red teaming —simulation exercises designed to identify vulnerabilities before attackers exploit them —are often not leveraged to their full potential. Barriers to use include reliance on skilled human experts due to the high sensitivity of such tasks, which makes the process more time-consuming, costly, and difficult to scale.
When an offensive test is conducted, companies often follow a fixed checklist that targets a specific set of familiar issues. If the system passes those checks, it's typically considered secure, at least on paper. However, this approach rarely delves deeper to uncover system-specific weaknesses, often overlooking vulnerabilities that fall outside the scope of the checklist.
Terra Security coming out with AI
In response to the growing need for more advanced cybersecurity measures, Terra Security is coming out of stealth with its AI-native, agentic penetration testing platform that leverages AI agents to perform continuous penetration testing at scale – a task hardly achievable when done manually. Thanks to recent developments in generative AI, Terra was able to develop an agentic AI solution that mimics the thought patterns of ethical hackers. As a pioneer in this space, Terra is the first company to emerge from stealth with these capabilities, specifically for penetration testing.
To enhance its platform, the company recently raised $8 million in a seed round by SYN Ventures, marking the first investment of its seed fund in an Israeli startup, and FXP Ventures, with additional participation by Underscore VC. This round was also supported by notable angel investors, including Google CISO Gerhard Eschelbeck, Ofer Ben-Noon, and Ohad Bobrov.
Enhanced by a human-in-the-loop mechanism that keeps the AI agents in check, Terra’s platform combines the accuracy and depth of skilled human testers with the scale and efficiency of automated solutions. The company’s AI agents are tailored to each client's unique environment, adapting and adjusting in real-time based on various business contexts and risks.
Founded less than a year ago by two security veterans, Terra will use the funds raised to further advance Terra’s platform by expanding its AI agents’ capabilities and scaling its customer reach. The company has already onboarded multiple clients, including Fortune 500 companies.
By combining AI that has been specifically designed for offensive technology with a team of experts, Terra delivers a forward-thinking approach to security. As the security landscape continues to evolve, leveraging AI-driven tools can help advance offensive security measures, streamline processes, and deliver trusted, consistent results.