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Gil Shwed

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Gil Shwed
גיל שויד
Speaking at the 2021 World Economic Forum
Born1968 (age 56–57)
Jerusalem, Israel
Occupation(s)Co-founder and Executive Chairman of the Board, Check Point Software Technologies

Gil Shwed (Hebrew: גיל שויד; born 1968)[1][2][3][4] is an Israeli software engineer and entrepreneur.[5][6] He is the co-founder and Executive Chairman of the Board of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd, one of Israel's largest technology companies and the world's largest pure-play cybersecurity company.[7][6] Shwed served as CEO from 1994 until 2024 and was the longest tenured CEO on Nasdaq.[8]

Early life

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Shwed was born in Jerusalem.[9] He started programming at the age of 13, and two years later began studying computer sciences at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, while he was still in high-school.[6]

During his military service he was part of the Intelligence Corps' Unit 8200.[10] After his military service had ended, Shwed joined the Israeli startup company Optrotech (currently Orbotech), where he worked as a Software Developer.

Career

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In 1993, Shwed founded Check Point with Shlomo Kramer, Shwed's friend from the military unit, and Marius Nacht with whom he worked at Optrotech.[6]

That year, Shwed invented and patented stateful inspection,[11] which served as the basis for the first version of the company's renowned FireWall-1, released in 1994.[12] Stateful Inspection is still widely used in network firewalls today.[13]

1994 Shwed became the chief executive officer and director of Check Point. He previously served as president of Check Point and chairman of the board.[14] As of 2018, Shwed is the leading shareholder in Checkpoint, owning 19.1% of the company, with an estimated worth of US$3.4 billion. The second largest shareholder in Check Point is US investment company Massachusetts Financial Services with a 7.7% stake worth $1.3 billion at present.[15]

Shwed and Check Point emphasize the "fifth generation" of cybersecurity, addressing the underlying issues behind such vulnerabilities as the WannaCry and NotPetya security breaches in 2017.[16][17] He has stated that enterprise businesses are "two generations behind" in their security thinking, and describes the industry as being at an "inflection point."[18]

On 5 March 2021, Forbes listed his net worth at US$2.9 billion.[19]

As of January 27, 2024, Forbes listed Gil Shwed net worth at US$4.38 billion, ranking him 682 on the Billionaires list[19] and he was ranked 9th among the top wealthiest people in Israel.[20]

In 2024, Shwed stepped down as CEO and became Executive Chairman of the Board.[21]

Boards

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He is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of Tel Aviv University and the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Youth University of Tel Aviv University. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Yeholot Association founded by the Rashi Foundation whose charter is, among other things, to reduce dropout rates in high schools.

Acknowledgments

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He received an honorary Doctor of Science from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, which he received in June 2005.[22]

In 2002, Shwed received the Academy of Achievement's Golden Plate Award at a ceremony in Dublin, Ireland, for his innovative contribution to business and technology.[23][24]

Globes honored Shwed as their "Person of the Year" in 2014.[25]

In 2018, Shwed was the recipient of the first-ever Israel Prize in technology.[23][26][27]

References

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  1. ^ "Gil Shwed". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org.
  2. ^ "Gil Shwed wins first-ever Israel Prize in high-tech". Globes. 4 March 2018.
  3. ^ "Check Point CEO to receive Israel Prize in Technology and Innovation - Israel News - Jerusalem Post". www.jpost.com.
  4. ^ "Markets : News - Marketscreener.com". www.marketscreener.com.
  5. ^ CIO. 1 October 2002. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d "A Fortune In Firewalls". Forbes. 18 March 2002. Archived from the original on 23 January 2013.
  7. ^ Morgan, Steve. "Meet the World's Largest Cybersecurity Companies". Forbes. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  8. ^ "Gil Shwed stepping down as Check Point CEO after 30 years". ctech. 6 February 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
  9. ^ "Cybersecurity mogul Gil Shwed wins first-ever Israel Prize for Technology". www.israelhayom.com. Retrieved 23 January 2025.
  10. ^ "The Unit". Forbes. 8 February 2007. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  11. ^ Paul Fisher (22 September 2009). SC Magazine interviews Gil Shwed, co-founder of Check Point. SC Magazine UK. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  12. ^ Kessler, E. H.; Wong-Mingji, D. J. (2009). Cultural mythology and global leadership. ISBN 9781848447387. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  13. ^ "What is stateful inspection?". Searchnetworking.techtarget.com. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  14. ^ "Bloomberg Executive Profile". Bloomberg News.
  15. ^ "Check Point to give Shwed options worth $144m". Globes. 19 July 2018.
  16. ^ Arkin, Dan (30 January 2018). ""It's imperative to develop innovative, sixth-generation defenses": Check Point Founder and CEO Gil Shwed said at the opening plenary of Cybertech Tel Aviv 2018 that "fifth-generation cyber-attacks excel in identification theft, as well as in targeting cloud services and mobile systems"". Israel Defense.
  17. ^ Murphy, Ian (25 January 2018). "Check Point warns of mega attacks". Enterprise Times.
  18. ^ Panettieri, Joe (7 February 2018). "Check Point Software CEO Gil Shwed Addresses Fifth Generation Cyber Attacks". MSSP Alert.
  19. ^ a b "Gil Shwed". Forbes. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  20. ^ "Wealthiest People in Israel (January 22, 2024)". CEOWORLD magazine.
  21. ^ "Check Point names Nadav Zafrir next CEO". Globes. 24 July 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
  22. ^ "March 2003". Pard.technion.ac.il. 27 March 2011. Archived from the original on 26 July 2010. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  23. ^ a b Yefet, Nati (4 March 2018). "Gil Shwed wins first-ever Israel Prize in high-tech". Globes.
  24. ^ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
  25. ^ Dover, Shiri (7 December 2014). ""Globes" names Gil Shwed "Person of the Year"". Globes. Globes. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  26. ^ "Cybersecurity Pioneer Gil Shwed to Receive First Israel Prize in Technology: Founder and CEO of Check Point Software Technologies has been awarded the first Israel Prize in the newly formed technology category". Haaretz. 5 March 2018.
  27. ^ Orbach, Meir (3 April 2018). "Check Point Founder Gil Shwed First Israel Award Laureate in the Field of Technology and Innovation". CTech / Calcalist.
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