Palo Alto Networks, Inc.

 Palo Alto Networks, Inc. is an American multinational cybersecurity company with headquarters in Santa Clara, California. The core product is a platform that includes advanced firewalls and cloud-based offerings that extend those firewalls to cover other aspects of security. The company serves over 70,000 organizations in over 150 countries, including 85 of the Fortune 100.^[6] It is home to the Unit 42 threat research team^[7] and hosts the Ignite cybersecurity conference.^[8] It is a partner organization of the World Economic Forum.^[9]

In 2018, Palo Alto Networks was listed 8th in the Forbes Digital 100.^[10] In June 2018, former Google and SoftBank executive Nikesh Arora joined the company as Chairman and CEO.^[11]

History[edit]

Palo Alto Networks was founded in 2005 by Nir Zuk, a former engineer from Check Point and NetScreen Technologies.^[12]

Starting in 2011, Gartner began listing Palo Alto Networks as a leader in the Magic Quadrant for Network Firewalls.^{[13][better source needed]}

The company debuted on the NYSE on July 20, 2012, raising $260 million with its initial public offering, which was the 4th-largest tech IPO of 2012.^[14][15][16] It remained on the NYSE until October 2021 when the company transferred its listing to Nasdaq.^{[17][better source needed]}

In 2014, Palo Alto Networks founded the Cyber Threat Alliance with Fortinet, McAfee, and NortonLifeLock, a not-for-profit organization with the goal of improving cybersecurity "for the greater good" by encouraging cybersecurity organizations to collaborate by sharing cyber threat intelligence amongst members.^[18][19] By 2018, the organization had 20 members including Cisco, Check Point, Juniper Networks, and Sophos.^[20]

The company expanded over the years, offering new enterprise cybersecurity services beyond its original next-generation firewall offering, such as Traps endpoint protection, Wildfire malware prevention,^[21] machine learning, and data analytics.^[22]

In 2018, the company began opening cybersecurity training facilities around the world as part of the Global Cyber Range Initiative.^[23]

In May 2018, the company announced Application Framework, an open cloud-delivered ecosystem where developers can publish security services as SaaS applications that can be instantly delivered to customers.^[2]

In June 2018, former Google Chief Business Officer and SoftBank President Nikesh Arora joined the company as chairman and CEO.^[11] His predecessor, Mark McLaughlin, became vice chairman of the board of directors. Arora received a pay package worth about $128 million, making him one of the highest-paid executives in the United States.^[24] In September 2018 Liane Hornsey, formerly Chief People Officer at Uber, joined Palo Alto Networks as Chief People Officer.^[25] In October 2018, Amit Singh, formerly President of Google Cloud, succeeded Mark Anderson as President of Palo Alto Networks.^[26] In August 2021, William (BJ) Jenkins succeeded Singh as president, with Singh assuming the role of Chief Business Officer.^{[27][better source needed]}

In 2019, the company announced the K2-Series, a 5G-ready next-generation firewall developed for service providers with 5G and IoT requirements.^{[28][better source needed]} In February 2019, the company announced Cortex, an AI-based continuous security platform.^[29] In 2022, the company was also listed in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Network Firewalls, also marking the 11th consecutive year of the company being listed.^[30]