KoolSpan has been developing security products for mobile devices since 2006. (Back then, cybersecurity meant giving anyone near your phone an askew glance.) But its biggest growth has been in the last two years—from eight employees to 40 and 665% revenue growth in the last year. CEO Gregg Smith says the mobile environment is getting more complex. The carrier infrastructure and device operating systems are continually changing. Plus all those apps, along with WiFi, bring new security issues. The company is looking for senior technical talent and is recruiting college engineering students.

The company, which has over 20 patents, recently graduated from Northrop Grumman and UMBC’s Cync Program, an 18-month scholarship program for cyber startups.  KoolSpan used it to focus on its TrustChip technology, a micro secure digital encryption engine that slides into smartphones and tablets to protect data and voice communications. Gregg says KoolSpan’s ability to build private label products for clients has worked well. (So it's the KoolSpan product with the customer's name on it.) Its customers include big names like AT&T and Samsung, along with governments and law firms.