Used to be when we thought about identity as it relates to computers and software, it involved a person logging into an application or service. Increasingly though, you also have machines and sensors attempting to authenticate as they access your systems.
That creates complications for identity management vendors because instead of managing thousands or tens of thousands of identities, it could require scaling to millions or even hundreds of millions logons. ForgeRock, a seven year old identity startup says it has built an identity platform with those kinds of scale requirements in mind.
The approach appears to be resonating with investors. Today, the company announced an $88 million Series D investment round led by Accel with participation from KKR, Meritech Capital Partners and Foundation Capital. Today’s investment brings the total to more than $140 million raised to-date.
CEO Mike Ellis sees his company’s approach to identity as a natural extension of what’s happening the industry. “The relationships between humans, devices, things and services is driving security,” he says. He believes it’s also driving new applications for identity and new business opportunities.
It’s something the company has been building towards from the earliest days, a platform than…