Fortinet
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cybersecurity |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Founder | Ken Xie, Michael Xie |
| Headquarters | Sunnyvale, California , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Philip Quade (Chief Information Security Officer) |
| Products | FortiGate (firewalls), endpoint security, intrusion detection systems, wireless access points, sandbox solutions, messaging security products, Security Fabric architecture, FortiAI |
| Website | www |
Fortinet, Inc. is a U.S.-based cybersecurity firm located in Sunnyvale, California, focusing on security technologies such as firewalls, endpoint security, and intrusion detection systems. The organization maintains a worldwide presence with numerous branch offices.
Established in 2000 by siblings Ken Xie and Michael Xie, Fortinet’s primary offering is FortiGate, a hardware firewall. Over time, the company broadened its portfolio to encompass wireless access points, sandbox solutions, and messaging security products. Fortinet became a publicly traded company in November 2009.
Founding and initial phase
In 2000, Ken Xie and his brother Michael founded Appligation, Inc., which later changed its name to ApSecure before adopting the Fortinet brand (derived from "Fortified Networks"). The debut product, FortiGate, was introduced in 2002, soon followed by anti-spam and anti-virus offerings. Between 2000 and early 2003, the company raised $13 million through private investments and launched its first channel program in October 2003. Distribution channels expanded into Canada by December 2003 and the United Kingdom by February 2004. By that year, Fortinet had established offices across Asia, Europe, and North America.
Development and scaling
Fortinet reached profitability in the third quarter of 2008. According to IDC in November 2009, the company commanded more than 15% of the unified threat management market share. That same year, CRN Magazine elevated Fortinet to the top position for network security hardware providers, climbing from seventh place in 2007. In November 2009, Fortinet completed its initial public offering on the NASDAQ Global Market under the ticker symbol FTNT, securing $156 million on opening day. Subsequently, it joined both the NASDAQ Global Select Market and the NASDAQ-100 index.
By 2010, annual revenues hit $324 million, with IDC confirming Fortinet’s leadership in unified threat management market share.
Recent developments
In July 2014, Fortinet introduced the Network Security Expert (NSE) certification program. March 2016 saw the launch of the Network Security Academy aimed at mitigating cybersecurity workforce shortages in the U.S., achieved through donations of equipment and resources to academic institutions. The same year marked the debut of FortiVet, a recruitment initiative targeting military veterans for cybersecurity positions.
In January 2017, Philip Quade—a former NSA official—was appointed as chief information security officer to strengthen corporate leadership. By 2019, NSS Labs awarded Fortinet’s FortiGate SD-WAN and Next Generation Firewall a "Recommended" rating, highlighting its strong competitive position in network defense.
Fortinet pledged in September 2021 to train one million individuals in support of President Joe Biden’s cybersecurity workforce development goals. In March 2022, the company halted all sales, support, and services within Russia as part of its global operational realignment amid geopolitical tensions.
Also during 2022, Fortinet incorporated artificial intelligence and machine learning into its security solutions by utilizing telemetry data collected from its worldwide network to enhance product capabilities. In June 2025, Investor's Business Daily recognized Fortinet on its Big Cap 20 list of leading large-cap growth stocks, reflecting robust financial results and significant market impact.
Acquisitions
Fortinet has deliberately broadened its product lineup through a series of focused acquisitions aimed at enhancing its cybersecurity and network security solutions. In 2008, the company secured the intellectual property of IPLocks, concentrating on database protection and auditing technologies. The following year, Fortinet incorporated Woven Systems' Ethernet switching innovations into its portfolio.
From 2012 through 2016, Fortinet bolstered its enterprise security capabilities by acquiring several companies: XDN, a provider of application hosting services; Coyote Point, specializing in application delivery; Meru Networks, known for Wi-Fi hardware; and AccelOps, an IT security analytics vendor.
In 2018, Fortinet expanded its cybersecurity scope by acquiring Bradford Networks, a firm focused on IoT security solutions, and ZoneFox, which provides threat analytics. Toward the end of 2019, the company further enhanced its endpoint protection and automation capabilities by bringing enSilo, an endpoint security firm, and CyberSponse, a SOAR platform provider, into its fold.
The year 2020 marked Fortinet’s entry into SASE cloud services with the acquisition of OPAQ Networks, alongside adding automated incident management through Panopta. In 2021, Fortinet accelerated its DevSecOps initiatives by acquiring ShieldX, a startup specializing in cloud and network security, and Sken.Ai, an innovator in application security.
Most recently, in June 2024, Fortinet acquired Lacework, a company specializing in data-driven cloud security solutions. This was followed by the August 2024 acquisition of Next DLP, a cloud-based data loss prevention provider. These calculated acquisitions underscore Fortinet’s commitment to reinforcing its market position and competitive edge within the global cybersecurity landscape.
Products
Fortinet introduced its inaugural product, FortiGate—a firewall—in 2002. Over time, this offering expanded to integrate anti-spam and anti-virus functionalities within a unified platform. The FortiGate product line evolved to incorporate application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) technology to boost performance and support advanced features such as SD-WAN. Initially launched as a physical rack-mounted appliance, FortiGate later became available as a virtual appliance compatible with virtualization environments like VMware vSphere.
In May 2004, Trend Micro initiated legal action against Fortinet; although the International Trade Commission initially ruled against Fortinet, key patents involved were ultimately invalidated by 2010. A 2005 OpenNet study revealed that Fortinet’s FortiGuard system was utilized in Myanmar for internet censorship despite U.S. sanctions; Fortinet clarified that sales occurred through third-party resellers and acknowledged compliance with embargo regulations.
April 2016 saw the introduction of Fortinet’s Security Fabric architecture designed to facilitate interoperability among multiple network security products as part of a cohesive platform. That same year, the company expanded into Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solutions and announced partnerships for integrating with other vendors’ security technologies.
By 2017, the Security Fabric architecture extended coverage to include switches, access points, analyzers, sandboxes, cloud services, endpoints, and firewalls. Concurrently, Fortinet launched a specialized subsidiary named Fortinet Federal to address cybersecurity needs within government sectors. The company has also achieved recognized security effectiveness certifications from NSS Labs.
In 2019, Gartner reported that Fortinet had grown its customer base for WAN edge solutions to approximately 21,000 clients.
In early 2020, Fortinet unveiled FortiAI—an AI-powered threat detection solution—followed by the release of multi-cloud SD-WAN capabilities mid-year. That same year BT Security designated Fortinet as one of its Critical Partners under its Threat Alliance program.
Security Flaws and Credential Exposures
In September 2021, a hacking forum revealed nearly half a million login credentials associated with Fortinet VPN devices. These credentials were derived from devices susceptible to a vulnerability first identified in 2018 (CVE-2018-13379).
By January 2025, over 15,000 FortiGate device credentials and configuration files were compromised, attributed to an exploit discovered in 2022 (CVE-2022–40684). These events underscore persistent cybersecurity challenges affecting Fortinet’s product integrity and customer confidence.
Cybersecurity Milestones
Fortinet launched FortiGuard Labs in 2005 as its dedicated internal division for security research. The company further extended its research and development footprint worldwide by 2014, establishing facilities across Asia, North America, and Europe, including the United States, Canada, and France.
In 2014, Fortinet partnered with Palo Alto Networks to create the Cyber Threat Alliance (CTA), an initiative promoting collaborative threat intelligence sharing among leading industry players such as McAfee and Symantec. The CTA's 2015 publication exposed the CryptoWall ransomware campaign, which amassed approximately $325 million in extortion payments.
Fortinet has also provided critical threat intelligence to Interpol aimed at combating major online fraud schemes responsible for substantial financial damages to businesses. In 2016, the company joined forces with Cisco and NATO in a data-sharing alliance designed to enhance global cybersecurity defenses.
Researchers at Fortinet have uncovered significant malware threats including IRS-impersonating spyware and ransomware targeting Android and macOS platforms, highlighting the firm’s commitment to advancing proactive cyber defense strategies.
Controversies
In April 2005, a German court issued a preliminary injunction against Fortinet’s UK branch concerning source code linked to components licensed under the GPL. The conflict was resolved within a month after Fortinet consented to provide access to the source code upon request.
Fortinet settled a whistleblower lawsuit in September 2019 related to an "isolated incident" involving the sale of deliberately mislabeled Chinese-made equipment to U.S. government clients.
In 2023, Microsoft and the Five Eyes intelligence alliance identified Fortinet FortiGuard devices as targets of an ongoing cyberattack orchestrated by a state-backed Chinese actor.
September 2024 saw an individual operating under the pseudonym "Fortibitch" claim responsibility for extracting 440 gigabytes of data from Fortinet’s Microsoft SharePoint server. Fortinet confirmed the security breach but noted it involved "limited data pertaining to a small subset of Fortinet customers."