Sophos announces new CEO Joe Levy & CFO Jim Dildine

Sophos has announced the official appointment of Joe Levy as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Levy, who has been serving as interim CEO since February 2024, brings nearly three decades of experience in cybersecurity product development and leadership to the role.

To aid in executing his strategic vision for Sophos, Levy has appointed Jim Dildine as the company’s new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and a member of the senior management team. Dildine, who most recently served as CFO at cybersecurity firm Imperva, has an extensive background in channel partner-based cybersecurity businesses, having held key financial leadership positions at Symantec and Blue Coat Systems.

During his nine-year tenure at Sophos, Levy has been instrumental in transforming the company from a product-only vendor into a prominent global player in the cybersecurity industry. Under his leadership, Sophos has developed an incident response team and a Managed Detection and Response (MDR) service that currently defends more than 21,000 organizations worldwide. Levy also established SophosAI and Sophos X-Ops, an operational threat intelligence unit that collaborates with over 500 cybersecurity operators and experts to enhance the company’s defensive capabilities.

Levy’s strategic focus as CEO includes expanding Sophos’ customer base in the midmarket. The company already boasts nearly 600,000 customers globally, generating more than USD $1.2 billion in annual revenue. Levy aims to leverage Sophos’ unique position to bolster its business and that of its partners by aiding organisations in strengthening their cybersecurity defences against both opportunistic and targeted attacks.

Data from Sophos’ Active Adversary report and 2024 Threat Report highlights the particular vulnerability of midmarket organisations to cyberattacks, including abuses of Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) access for data theft, spying, ransomware, and supply chain breaches. Levy remarked, “When midmarket organisations – the global critical substrate – are paralysed due to ransomware or other cyberattacks, business activities linked in our supply chains also stagnate, slowing our economy down.”

Adding Dildine to the leadership team is a key component of Levy’s strategy to drive future growth. Dildine’s tenure at Blue Coat Systems, where he worked alongside Levy, saw significant company growth and a series of major transactions, culminating in a USD $4.6 billion sale to Symantec. Dildine also oversaw the acquisition and integration of six security-focused companies during his time there.

Commenting on his new role, Dildine said, “Having worked in technology and finance for more than 30 years, it is exciting to join Sophos at this juncture. The company’s commitment to innovation in cybersecurity and support for its partners and employees worldwide is truly impressive.”

Chip Virnig, partner at Thoma Bravo and Sophos board member, expressed confidence in the duo’s leadership, stating, “We’ve worked with Joe and Jim at various companies for over a decade, and we are confident that their combined expertise will greatly benefit the future of Sophos.”

With the new appointments, Sophos looks forward to advancing its mission of helping organisations, particularly those in the midmarket, to enhance their ability to detect and disrupt cyberattacks, thereby securing the broader supply chain and global economy.