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Decru is a Redwood City, California-based enterprise technology company that develops networked data storage appliances featuring wire-speed encryption, authentication, and compliance tools to secure sensitive corporate data at rest behind firewalls. The data security provider raised approximately $45 million in venture capital funding from a syndicate of prominent institutional investors including Benchmark Capital, Greylock, and In-Q-Tel. Its hardware and software solutions are designed for heterogeneous storage environments, helping large enterprise organizations maintain strict compliance with industry regulations such as the Visa Payment Card Industry data standards. Operating with a workforce of approximately 45 employees, the business was ultimately acquired by Network Appliance, also known as NetApp, for $272 million in cash and stock to operate as an independent business unit following the transaction. Decru was founded in 2001 by Dan Avida and Serge Plotkin.
Decru has raised $55.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Decru has raised $55.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Decru has raised $55.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Decru's investors include Benchmark, Green Bay Ventures, Greylock.
# Decru: Storage Security Pioneer
Decru is a data storage security company that provides networked storage protection through wire-speed encryption appliances[1]. Founded in 2001, Decru specializes in securing stored data across enterprise and government networks by inserting a layer of strong encryption, authentication, access controls, and compartmentalization into the storage infrastructure[1].
The company serves enterprises and governments across multiple sectors—including investment banking, healthcare, semiconductors, software, and federal agencies—addressing critical needs around regulatory compliance, data privacy, secure consolidation, and secure outsourcing[1]. Decru's DataFort™ appliances represent its core product offering, designed to protect the core of storage networks without disrupting existing infrastructure[1].
Decru was founded in 2001 during the early wave of enterprise security awareness, when data protection was becoming a competitive differentiator rather than a commodity[1]. The company raised more than $43.3 million in venture financing from prominent investors including Benchmark Capital, Greylock, New Enterprise Associates, and In-Q-Tel—the CIA's venture arm—signaling strong institutional confidence in its mission[1].
A pivotal moment came in January 2004 when Decru began a strategic partnership with NetApp, a leading storage systems provider[1]. This collaboration proved transformative: on June 7, NetApp and Decru jointly announced an integrated platform for secure credit card processing and storage compliant with Visa and Mastercard's Payment Card Industry (PCI) security standards[1]. This partnership ultimately led to NetApp's acquisition of Decru for $272 million, validating the company's technology and market position[5].
Decru emerged at a critical inflection point when enterprises were grappling with data breaches, regulatory mandates, and the shift toward outsourced and virtualized storage. The company rode the wave of storage consolidation—as organizations centralized data in fewer, larger repositories, the security risk concentrated accordingly[1].
The timing was essential: Decru's government backing (through In-Q-Tel) reflected national security concerns about data protection, while its enterprise traction demonstrated that security could be a premium, defensible market rather than a cost center. By positioning encryption as an appliance rather than software, Decru influenced how the industry thought about security—as infrastructure-level protection rather than application-level bolts-on[1].
NetApp's acquisition reflected the broader consolidation of the storage market around integrated, security-first solutions. Decru's technology became a cornerstone of NetApp's data protection portfolio, sitting alongside backup, replication, and virus protection offerings[1].
Decru's $272 million acquisition by NetApp validated a prescient thesis: data at rest requires dedicated, high-performance protection. The company proved that enterprises would pay premium prices for security that didn't compromise performance—a lesson that shaped the storage and cybersecurity industries for decades.
Looking forward, Decru's legacy within NetApp positions the combined entity to address evolving threats around cloud storage, ransomware, and compliance complexity. As data volumes explode and regulatory frameworks multiply, the core problem Decru solved—protecting sensitive data without operational friction—remains as relevant as ever. The company's early focus on government and regulated industries positioned it perfectly for a world where data breaches carry existential business risk.
Decru has raised $55.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $28.0M Series B in February 2003.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 1, 2003 | $28M Series B | — | Benchmark | Announced |
| Jul 1, 2002 | $27M Series B | — | Benchmark, Green BAY Ventures, Greylock | Announced |
