Peterborough duo launch crowdfunding bid to test new anti-hacking software

Two entrepreneurs in Peterborough plan to use crowdfunding to raise cash to test new software they say will do away with hacker-vulnerable passwords.
Jonathan Craymer and Jon Beal, founders of Cloud-pin and the innovative Shayype software.Jonathan Craymer and Jon Beal, founders of Cloud-pin and the innovative Shayype software.
Jonathan Craymer and Jon Beal, founders of Cloud-pin and the innovative Shayype software.

Jonathan Craymer and Jon Beal, who run Cloud-pin, of the Eco-Innovation Centre, in City Road, have developed a complex matrix called Shayype.

They claim it will replace passwords for online uses from emails to banking and shopping.

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Shayype has been 12 years in the making and has already secured backing from a number of organisations in Peterborough that are keen to test the application.

The Shayype matrix.The Shayype matrix.
The Shayype matrix.

Cloud-pin’s chairman, Mr Craymer, said: “We hope to raise £40,000 to properly test Shayype.

“It will pay for a programmer for a year and allow us to begin security testing of our systems.”

The crowdfunding will be done through LEOcrowd, of London, a reward-based crowdfunding platform.

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Investors can donate any amount starting at £5. There is a scale of rewards for investors.

The Shayype matrix.The Shayype matrix.
The Shayype matrix.

Mr Craymer said: “Passwords are a huge problem, which should have been fixed years ago.

“Now we’re hoping our two-man start-up has done something the tech giants have failed to do - coming up with a simple replacement for passwords.”

Shayype is a grid of constantly changing numbers. The user imagines a pattern on the matrix and types in the numbers within the shape in a separate box to secure the pattern.

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In future uses the shape will be the same but the numbers to type in will be different.

Two years ago, the development of Shayype was given a boost by a grant from the UK government’s smart cities demonstrator programme, administered by Opportunity Peterborough (OP).

Steve Bowyer, OP chief executive, said: “With a world that’s moving ever more towards digital connectivity and sharing information and intelligence, it’s vital that appropriate cyber security measures are in place.

“These trials will show whether a Peterborough company can play its part in discovering that solution.”

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One of the companies that have agreed to test the system is Buglife, of Ham Lane, Peterborough.

Paul Hetherington, Buglife’s director of fundraising and communications, said: “The new Shayype product presents a safe, secure but easy to remember solution for logging in - an opportunity we are excited to share with our supporters.”

For details about Shayype’s crowdfunding campaign visit: www.leocrowd.com/projects/730/Shayype:-Redesigning-Passwords

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