CensorNet snatches Trustwave man for tech push

Security vendor appoints Alex Kurz as new head of sales engineering

CensorNet has made former Trustwave man Alex Kurz its new director of sales engineering.

Kurz, who most recently was Trustwave's European technical director for three years, will build CensorNet's pre-sales engineering team in his new role as well as deliver technical training to new partners. He will also work with the product team on next-generation content security solutions.

Chief executive Ed Macnair, who led a consortium of investors to buy out CensorNet in October, said the new appointment was good news.

"We are excited to have Alex on board," he said. "Formerly Trustwave's technical director for service providers in Europe, he brings with him a wealth of technical knowledge around web and email content security and has well-established relationships within the channel, especially the service provider community."

Last month, Macnair signalled his intention to "cause pain to its competitors", including Trustwave, and said he wanted to "shake up" the market.

Macnair added: "Exciting times are ahead for CensorNet. With the upcoming launch of our new web security solution we will be looking to the channel to push out our solution far and wide. Alex will be a vital asset in driving our intensive channel strategy, enhancing product development and strengthening the core management team."

Kurz (pictured), director of sales engineering, said: "Web-security-as-a-service is the next big story in the content-management market and businesses need solutions that befit the environment. To be part of such a great new channel proposition for service providers is a very exciting opportunity.

"My primary objective will be to strengthen CensorNet's position within the channel community and drive adoption among customers worldwide - and building a strong pre-sales team will be fundamental in achieving this," he said.

Kurz and Macnair previously worked together for two years at security vendor Marshal, which become M86 Security in 2008.