A former malware developer that is taking over VPN companies one after another

Former malware development company Kape Technologies, which was criticized for profiting from illegal insertion of malware, is acquiring VPN (Cyber Ghost, Zenmate, Private Internet Access VPN, ExpressVPN) companies one after another.

On September 14, 2021, ExpressVPN was acquired for $936 million, the highest ever for a VPN service. The company was acquired by Cape Technologies. Although it has acquired several VPN companies so far, it is forerunner of a company called Crossrider, which was originally reported to be distributing malware.

At that time, the malware distributed by Crossrider forced the browser to display advertisements through browser extensions or software. The malware ran rampant from 2013 to August 2019, but it is revealed that it was starting to acquire VPN services around this time.

In 2017, Crossrider suddenly acquired Cyber GhostVPN, the then-best VPN in the world, for 92 million euros, and in March 2018 changed the name from Crossrider to Cape Technology because it was closely related to its past activities. In October of the same year, it acquired ZenmateVPN, a German VPN service with 45 million users, for 4.8 million euros. Then, in 2019, it acquired Private Internet Access VPN (Private Internet Access VPN), which was selected as the largest company in the industry at the time, for $127 million, and acquired ExpressVPN for $936 million, the highest VPN in 2021.

It’s not just VPN services that Cape Technology is stepping up its offensive. In May 2021, it acquired Webselenese, which runs a VPN review site. Together with the app review site (Wizcase.com) it operates, it has won 6.1 million monthly visitors. Accordingly, the three affiliated companies of Cape Technology monopolize the top 3 VPN service rankings.

Koby Menachemi, the founder of Crossrider, the predecessor of Cape Technology, is a former spy from Unit 8200, an Israeli intelligence agency. In addition, Teddy Sagi, a major shareholder of two companies, Crossrider and Cape Technology, was arrested for insider trading in the 1990s and was named in a Panama document released in 2016. In addition to this, ExpressVPN chief intelligence officer (Daniel Gericke) was fined by the U.S. Department of Justice for engaging in espionage in the United Arab Emirates on September 14, 2021, the day before the acquisition of Cape Technologies.

For this reason, it is argued that it is necessary to keep in mind this dark spot in advance when using a VPN service owned by Cape Technology. Related information can be found here.