Cranite Systems names CEO, gets funding

Cranite Systems, Inc., a San Jose, Calif., provider of security software for wireless local area networks, named security industry veteran John Vigouroux as the company's chairman and chief executive officer.

Company officials also announce that they raised $10 million in a private financing from existing investors.

Vigouroux has more than 20 years of experience in enterprise systems and security software, including sales, marketing, product development and business strategy, according to the company. He has held executive positions in both large multinational companies such as Cisco Systems Inc. and Adobe Systems Inc., as well as several Silicon Valley startups.

Vigouroux most recently served as president and chief operating officer of Tumbleweed Communications Corp., a Redwood City, Calif., secure Internet messaging software provider.

Vigouroux has a track record of leading early-stage companies to profitability, said David Lane, general partner of Menlo Park, Calif., Diamondhead Ventures and a member of Cranite's board of directors.

The company expects to use the $10 million in new money to pay for new products and to expand its market. The funding round was led by Diamondhead Ventures and included JK&B Capital, BV Capital, Industry Ventures LLC, Pacifica Fund and Selby Venture Partners, according to the company.

Cranite's outgoing CEO, Greg McNulty, will remain with the company as president, where he will continue working on business development.

The Cranite WirelessWall software encrypts all transmitted information ? network addresses, applications and ports ? as well as data. This protect both the data and the network, while allowing users to securely roam across sub-nets without needing to re-authenticate or reboot their computers, according to the company.