Bitdefender Celebrates 20 Years of Cybersecurity Leadership

November 2021 marks a special month for Bitdefender as we celebrate our 20th anniversary. It has been an exciting journey since our 2001 founding. We have come a long way, growing into one of the most trusted cybersecurity leaders in the world protecting the data of millions of consumers and thousands of businesses across 170 countries.

We see this anniversary as a powerful example of Bitdefender’s continued resilience over the years, as well as a sign of hope as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. Anniversaries like this, celebrated responsibly, bring positivity, togetherness and a sense of pride during a time when many may be struggling. It shows empathy and a sense of community that ensures we get through this together.

Celebrating Our Story and Achievements

Our story began more than 30 years ago, right after the fall of the Soviet bloc in 1990 when my wife Mariuca and I founded one of Romania’s first private software development companies. An unfortunate incident involving a computer virus, a floppy disk and a very upset customer ended up becoming a defining moment in my life. After discovering a virus was passed to a customer undetected, we worked with the engineering team to build a better solution so this wouldn’t happen again. A “lightbulb” moment occurred when we realized what we developed could help others far better than what was available on the market. The idea of Bitdefender was born.

From modest beginnings in a small Bucharest office to now nearly 1,800 employees spread across the globe, including an elite team of researchers, engineers and mathematicians, Bitdefender’s continued growth and success remain focused on a single mission – fighting cybercrime.  

Our commitment to that fight over several decades has brought significant achievements, ranging from patents issued for technology innovations in threat detection, machine learning and artificial intelligence, to important discoveries of new malware, nation-state campaigns and adversarial tactics. This work significantly strengthened the entire cybersecurity community, not just our immediate customers. One area we are especially proud of is our decryptor program that disrupts ransomware operations, which have been economically devastating. To date, we have released 20 free decryptors to the public, saving organizations and consumers millions of dollars in recovered files and ransom fees.

We are recognized as a leader in threat prevention, endpoint detection and response and managed security services by leading analysis firms including Gartner, IDC and Forrester. We have received multiple honors from MITRE, AV-TEST, AV-Comparatives and other top independent testing labs for our unmatched ability to detect threats in any environment, including mobile and cloud.

Honoring Our People

Without a solid foundation of teamwork and dedication, Bitdefender and its accomplishments would not be possible. Put simply, Bitdefender’s success is because of its people, especially in these difficult times when the pandemic keeps us apart more than we would like.

Without our Bitdefenders we would not be here today. From engineering, sales, finance, HR, marketing, IT and support roles to our elite Labs and MDR analysts, all of you play a special role in carrying out our mission to always guard and protect. Know your hard work makes a tremendous difference for many others.

The Daily Source of Inspiration

Our customers inspire us each day. They trust us to protect their most valuable digital assets, it is an honor and a privilege to serve them. We look forward to many more years delivering cybersecurity solutions and expertise to help achieve and exceed their goals.  

We’ve had the opportunity to work with the industry’s best technology vendors, service providers and channel partners. Each are an extension of our team and play a crucial part in helping Bitdefender deliver quality, support and continuous improvement as demand for advanced cybersecurity solutions grows worldwide.

Looking Ahead

It is hard to predict exactly how the digital world will evolve over the next 20 years. What is certain, however, is that cybersecurity will always remain important for consumers wanting to protect their photos, identity and online privacy, organizations that worry about intellectual property theft and ransomware attacks, and governments concerned about citizen safety. Whatever new challenges come our way, be assured that we will meet them head-on.

This month we celebrate the past and admire everyone who has played an important role. We are even more excited about what is yet to come as we build on our accomplishments to help shape the future. I am deeply proud of our history and the company we have built and honored to lead the global team of Bitdefenders who fight cybercrime to make the world a safer place.