iYogi Secures $9.5M in Series B Funding Led by SAP Ventures, With Follow-on Investment from Canaan Partners and SVB India Capital Partners

iYogi Secures $9.5M in Series B Funding Led by SAP Ventures, With Follow-on Investment from Canaan Partners and SVB India Capital Partners
iYogi, a Direct-to-Consumer and Small Business Technical Support Provider, Paves the Way for Personal Offshoring to Become India’s Next Success Story

New York, 24 July, 2008: Personal Offshoring, which is driving the next wave of India’s outsourcing success story, got a huge boost today when iYogi - a remote technical supportprovider from India - raised $ 9.5 million in Series B financing from SAP Ventures, a division of SAP AG, Canaan Partners and SVB India Capital Partners, a venture fund affiliate of Silicon Valley Bank.

iYogi (www.iyogi.net) delivers technical support services directly to consumers and small businesses and is the first, global, technical support brand based out of India. The company offers its customers an unlimited, annual service subscription for $119.99 per desktop that includes support for a wide range of technologies, including PC hardware Microsoft Windows operating system, software applications, peripherals and multifunctional devices.

“Personal Offshoring has created new investment opportunities in India with incredible growth potential,” said Doug Higgins, partner at SAP Ventures. “It is very exciting to see companies like iYogi challenging the traditional enterprise-focused offshore-service delivery model by creating a consumer-focused, direct-to-customer personal offshore model. iYogi is one of the fastest-growing companies in this market segment, and we look forward to working with them to create India’s next success story.”

“Our focus on the customer experience has helped us achieve a 93 percent satisfaction rate across more than 50,000 customers,” said Uday Challu, CEO of iYogi. “We are delighted to have the support of three terrific investors as we increase our market share and continue to provide the best technical support experience possible for our customers.”

iYogi will use the funds to fuel its expansion into 12 new regions, including the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada, and to increase its delivery of new services including PC recovery, anti-virus/spyware, data back-up and PC optimization.

“As consumer technologies grow in sophistication, consumers will be seeking the kind of home IT support services – including remote services offered by companies such as iYogi – to help them solve their most complex problems,” said Kurt Scherf, vice president and principal analyst, Parks Associates. “In primary research, we found more than one-third of consumers are willing to pay for competent and professional remote support services, and 60% express a strong interest in software solutions – what we refer to as ‘PC Dashboards’ – that automate many basic PC performance enhancement and troubleshooting features, solving many PC-related problems before they even are noticed by end-users.”

iYogi had previously raised $3.1 million in Series A financing from Canaan Partners and SVB in April of last year. “iYogi is one of the most promising investments for Canaan Partners,” said Alok Mittal, managing director of India at Canaan Partners. “Third-party, vendor-independent technical support is an exciting new service category, witnessing explosive growth. Customers are looking beyond the traditional vendor-provided support to remote channels for better problem resolution, faster service, and greater overall satisfaction. iYogi has created an incredible value proposition and price offering for its customers that is hard to beat.”

”Several next generation outsourcing companies from India are delivering a range of personal offshoring services for individuals and small businesses in the U.S. including online tutoring, tax preparation, remote executive assistance and research services,” said Suresh Shanmugham, managing director of SVB India Capital Partners, a venture fund affiliate of Silicon Valley Bank. “iYogi has leveraged the technical skills available in India along with process expertise to scale as a global technical support provider for millions faced with increasingly complex technology”.

About SAP Ventures
SAP Ventures invests in innovative and disruptive software and services companies globally. We pursue opportunities across all stages for outstanding financial return. Our goal is to bring substantial benefit to all parties by facilitating interaction between portfolio companies and SAP and its ecosystem of customers and partners. SAP Ventures has a successful track record of building industry-leading companies by partnering with outstanding entrepreneurs and top-tier venture capital firms since 1996. For more information, visit www.sapventures.com.

About Canaan Partners

Canaan Partners is a global venture capital firm specializing in early-stage information technology and life sciences companies. Founded in 1987, Canaan Partners has $2.4 billion capital under management and has invested in more than 240 companies, completed 63 mergers and acquisitions, and brought over 50 companies public. The firm catalyzes the development of innovative mobile, Internet, CleanTech, networking, semiconductor, enterprise software and services, biotechnology and medical technologies to build next-generation market leaders. Canaan was an early investor in Acme Packet (APKT), Aperto Networks, BharatMatrimony.com, Blurb, DoubleClick (DCLK), ID Analytics, Match.com and SuccessFactors, along with dozens of other market-leading companies. Canaan is headquartered in Menlo Park, California and also has offices in Connecticut, India and Israel. For more information visit: www.canaan.com.

SVB India Capital Partners Fund and Silicon Valley Bank

SVB India Capital Partners Fund is a $54 million equity fund that is focused on Indian companies and co-invests across industries and stages with top-tier venture capital firms. Silicon Valley Bank is the premier commercial bank for emerging, growth and mature companies in the technology, life science, private equity and premium wine industries. Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., the company serves clients around the world through 27 U.S. offices and five international operations. Silicon Valley Bank is a member of global financial services firm SVB Financial Group, with SVB Analytics, SVB Capital, SVB Global and SVB Private Client Services. More information on the company can be found at www.svb.com.

About iYogi

iYogi is the first direct-to-consumer and small business technical support service from India. Providing an annual unlimited subscription to technical support for $119.99 per year, iYogi now boasts more than 50,000 customers. The company employs 450 professionals servicing customers in the U.S., U.K., Canada fast expanding to 12 new geographies across the globe. iYogi’s resolution rate of 87 percent and customer satisfaction rate of 93 percent are amongst the highest published benchmarks in the industry. For further information, please visit www.iyogi.net.

SAP and all SAP logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries. All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.

The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. iYogi shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.

SAP and all SAP logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries.
All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies.

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.



Contact:


Company Name:
iYogi Technical Services Pvt Ltd

Address:
iYogi Inc.
12 Desbrosses Street
3rd Floor
New York, NY 10013

Toll Free no: 1-800-237-3901

Work Number: 1-212-229-0901

F ax Number: 1-888-867-2715

Security paradox for enterprises

Adam Kleemeyer discusses the most appropriate security options resellers should consider when putting together Unified Communications solutions for their Remote support services customers.

The very openness and ubiquity that makes IP networking such a powerful business enabler can also expose it to a significant threat. The ports and portals that welcome Remote support services sites, mobile users, customers, and business partners into the trusted internal network are also welcoming to those who may compromise the network’s security.

Security breaches – and the business disruptions they causes – represent a key concern for your customers. In the past, they relied on intranets primarily for email and file exchange, and they used the Internet as their web storefront. With Unified Communications, since IP networks are being entrusted to carry the essential functions of conducting business – customer contact centres, voice, Unified Messaging, conferencing, and more – there’s a heightened requirement for protection.

Removing the obstacle

Now that IP networks offer the robustness and quality of service that voice service requires, enterprises have been quick to capitalise on the benefits of Unified Communications. Converging voice and data over IP maximises network efficiency, streamlines the architecture, reduces capital and operating costs, and opens up new service opportunities.

The IP-based multimedia architecture makes it easy to extend service to Remote support services sites and home offices over cost-effective IP links, and makes it easy to deploy, reconfigure (add/move/change) and repair service. Unified Communications enables rich, new multimedia services, such as web-enabled multimedia contact centres, Unified Messaging, presence andRemote support services-based call management.

However, there are factors that need to be considered in deploying a VoIP solution. As the lines blur between internal and external resources, the network reaches more audiences and touch points, carries more mission-critical services, and adds more distributed servers and intelligent clients. It also becomes increasingly vulnerable to security threats.

The typical enterprise internal network extends to supply chain partners, telecommuters, Remote support services access users, web users, application service providers, disaster recovery providers and more. That means that the network may also be more accessible to hackers, cyberthieves, disgruntled employees, and others who would misappropriate network resources. Worse yet, although estimates vary on what percentage of security breaches are internal, most sources consider that figure to be more than 50 percent.

Organisations have been understandably concerned about securing this new multimedia environment, in which proprietary company information flows across shared facilities, public places, open airwaves and unknown users. It’s clear that security must be a key focus in any VoIP deployment.

Security for IP multimedia networks should be achievable, affordable and manageable. Confidentiality, integrity, and authentication of critical multimedia resources must be ensured while maintaining service continuity, feature richness, performance and availability. Security features should be transparent to the user, standard-based, simple to administer, uniform across products and cost-effective.

Finally, security should be implemented consistently across the solution.

As a trusted reseller, it’s your responsibility to deliver on that promise with a secure Unified Communications solution that:

• Protects the integrity of network infrastructure and communications by preventing unauthorised access;

•Increases network reliability by preventing disruptions from attacks on user services, network hardware or network management systems; and

• Prevents theft of intellectual property and abuse of resources from eavesdropping and toll fraud

A layered security strategy

A layered defense approach to network security applies multiple security approaches at multiple network levels – much like protecting your property with sentries and gates at several places.

The approach applies multiple enforcement tactics – such as authentication, encryption, packet filtering and signature-based inspection – at multiple network zones – such as access endpoint, network perimeter, network core and transport links.

A layered approach minimises the possibility that a single point of failure could compromise overall security. If a primary layer of security is breached, the secondary or tertiary layer of defense is there to thwart the attack.

This gives a cross section of the security layers, with several enforcement approaches in action. This layered approach applies directly to a VoIP solution as follows:

The core network layer protection includes the devices that monitor for unwanted behaviour or traffic patterns, and respond – this would include Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems. The network protection approach could also apply policies that authorise devices onto the network (such as the 802.1x protocol) as well as ensuring that DoS-like traffic could be detected and shut down, and prevent devices from IP address spoofing.

Protection around the communications layer would include the ability to encrypt your voice traffic with SRTP (Secure Real-Time Transport Protocol), and signalling traffic with UNIStim or TLS (Transport Layer Security) encryption.

Source: crn.com.au/Feature/4670,security-paradox-for-enterprises.aspx

Test Your Remote computer services IQ: How Do You Rate?

Your company maintains a top-notch information security program. To capitalize on this strength, your marketing manager wants to build an ad campaign promoting your airtight information security. Your company is in an information-intensive industry, so this might lead to a competitive advantage with little downside. True or False?

Information security is a dynamic field and, although [many] professionals have become much savvier on the subject, keeping track of the latest best practices can be a daunting task. How current are you? Take this quiz on information security basics to find out.

1. Because no single antivirus program can protect against all viruses, you can enhance protection by installing several different antivirus programs from trusted vendors. True or False?

2. Your company maintains a virtual private network (VPN) that allows off-site employees to connect to the company network via the Internet. The VPN uses the latest and most secure encryption available, encoding all data from the Remote computer services all the way to the office server. By loading the VPN software on public remote computers, like those at hotel business centers, you can transact sensitive and confidential business over your company network with a high level of confidence in the security. True or False?

3. Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) encryption on Wi-Fi networks, which was cracked several years ago, should be avoided at all costs. True or False?

4. Using Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) encryption and media access control (MAC) address filtering on your Wi-Fi access point does not provide sufficient protection for transacting sensitive and confidential business via the Internet from your wireless device or remote computer. True or False?

5. You receive an e-mail from your company's IT administrator warning that a new security hole has been discovered in your corporate software. The e-mail provides a link to a patch site and directs you to download and install a patch to plug the vulnerability. Before clicking on the link and installing the patch, you should verify the legitimacy of the e-mail. True or False?

6. Your company maintains a top-notch information security program. To capitalize on this strength, your marketing manager wants to build an ad campaign promoting your airtight information security. Your company is in an information-intensive industry, so this might lead to a competitive advantage with little downside. True or False?

7. A trusted IT employee quits the company in a huff. Security escorts him off the premises. To prevent potential mischief, you immediately eliminate the employees login IDs and passwords from the company information systems and disable all other access to company premises, such as his door keycard and security pass. You and the company can breathe easily. True or False?

source : newsfactor.com/news/Test-Your-Information-Security-IQ/story.xhtml?story_id=021000Q2H0VF