Fort Worth-based Neon Cyber has emerged from stealth with what it calls the first Workforce Cybersecurity Platform, designed to protect employees where they actually work—inside browsers with access to SaaS apps and enterprise systems.

The announcement marks the company’s public debut. Earlier this year, Neon closed a seed round led by Austin-based Silverton Partners, according to Crunchbase, though the amount was not disclosed.

Co-founder and CEO Cody Pierce said that securing the workforce is the “missing piece” in cybersecurity technologies today. “For too long, organizations have invested heavily in infrastructure protection while leaving people exposed,”  he said in a statement. 

Neon said the platform addresses human-driven risks such as phishing, credential abuse, and “SaaS sprawl” created when employees adopt tools outside IT’s oversight.

Pierce described the design as putting a security expert inside the browser, “stopping threats before they get serious.”

Industry veterans

Pierce and co-founder Mark St. John previously built and exited security firm AlphaWave in 2021. Pierce brings experience from ZeroFox, LookingGlass, Rapid7, and Endgame, while St. John has led security operations and incident response at Verizon and other enterprises.

They launched Neon after concluding that most cybersecurity investments still focus on infrastructure rather than people. According to the company, 60% of breaches involve a human element, with stolen or misused credentials driving nearly a quarter (22%) of initial access and phishing close behind at 16%.

Traditional defenses are outdated in an era of remote work and rapid SaaS adoption, they say, noting “cybersecurity has no perimeter, and it’s time we stopped pretending it does.” In a recent Forbes Technology Council column, more on “the intersection of people, data, and technology” than on firewalls and devices. On LinkedIn, St. John put it more bluntly, saying attackers have become “greedy little goblins” chasing user identities. “Let’s work together to keep the workforce safe,” he wrote.

How the platform works

In a recent interview, SecurityWeek senior contributor Kevin Townsend described Neon’s approach as “shining a light into the browser,” noting the focus on visibility and control where employees actually work.

Neon said the platform brings together several layers of protection, using AI-powered phishing defense to intercept malicious links before a user can click. It also provides visibility into shadow SaaS risk through a catalog that helps teams govern access, reduce sprawl, and enforce policy.

In addition, the company says the system incorporates behavior-based authentication controls and compliance tools within the browser itself, enabling faster response to risky activity without forcing employees to use special browsers or complex integrations.

That approach, it said, gives security teams more immediate insight into how employees interact with applications day to day.

Neon said the platform brings together several layers of protection, using AI-powered phishing defenses to intercept malicious links before a user can click. It also provides visibility into shadow SaaS risk through a catalog that helps teams govern access, reduce sprawl, and enforce policy.

In addition, the company says the system incorporates behavior-based authentication controls and compliance tools within the browser itself, enabling faster responses to risky activity without forcing employees to use special browsers or complex integrations.

That approach, it said, gives security teams more immediate insight into how employees interact with applications day to day.

Neon’s protection works in the mainstream browsers employees already use, providing visibility and control at the point of click, the company said.

That differs from the enterprise-browser category—a space pioneered by Dallas-based quadruple unicorn Island—which delivers data-loss prevention and governance through its Island Enterprise Browser that puts the core IT, security, and productivity needs into the browser itself. 

The risks addressed have overlap, but the architectures and adoption paths are different

Early traction

Neon said it’s already working with customers in healthcare (DocGo), energy (BP Energy), and government (the City of Danville, Illinois).

“As part of our ongoing effort to identify and close security gaps, we recognized browsers as a critical blind spot,” said Agnel D’Silva, CTO at the City of Danville. “Neon Cyber has given us the visibility and control we need to identify risks and strengthen our overall cybersecurity posture.”

The company also announced a technology partnership with San Francisco–based Elastic Security to boost enterprise visibility and threat detection. Michael Nichols, Elastic’s VP of product, said the collaboration makes protection “easy to deploy, giving organizations confidence their people, data, and applications are secure.”

Looking ahead

St. John said Neon is built around supporting employees, not faulting them. “Hybrid work is here to stay, SaaS adoption is exploding, and identity threats are escalating,” he said. “We built this company because we’re tired of the industry blaming the workforce—it’s time we actually protect them.”

The aim, he added, is to “defend organizations and users directly where work happens, instead of trying to build more fences.”

Lance Murray contributed to this report.

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