Dive Brief:

• McAfee named long-time Experian alum Brian Herb to its CFO chair, the computer security software provider said in a Wednesday press release. Herb will report to President and CEO Craig Boundy. 
• Herb will succeed Jennifer Biry, who announced she would be departing from her roles as CFO and chief operating officer at the security provider after four years, according to a June 8 post on her LinkedIn page. “I’m immensely proud of what we’ve accomplished — transforming McAfee into a direct-to-consumer cybersecurity company, building an exceptional team, launching innovative products that protect our customers and positioning the business for long-term success,” Biry wrote of her tenure in the post.  
• The San Jose, Calif.-based virus protection provider “has built a strong foundation as a consumer-focused business with significant opportunity ahead,” Herb said in a statement included in the release. “I look forward to working with the team to further strengthen the company’s financial operations and support its next phase of accelerated growth.”

Dive Insight:

Herb is joining the security software provider after working six years at software developer CCC Intelligent Solutions, where he served in the dual roles of CFO and chief administrative officer, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Prior to CCC, he logged two decades at credit agency Experian, serving in various roles including four years as CFO for its North American regional business group. Herb began his career as an auditor at Big Four firm Ernst & Young.

The CFO appointment comes as McAfee, and the wider software industry, is grappling with the evolution of artificial intelligence, which some have said may render some software providers obsolete. Earlier this year, that fear drove a stock sell-off in the industry that led companies such as Intuit, Microsoft and Salesforce to lose $50 billion apiece in market share, according to Feb. 26 report in The Wall Street Journal.

As the steady influx of AI into the software industry has continued to influence valuations, companies have taken steps to improve their balance sheets. Between January and March of this year, McAfee bought back approximately $287 million in unsecured notes, “taking advantage of a software rout that hit its debt stack,” according to a March 11 report by Bloomberg citing people familiar with the matter.

The move enabled the computer security provider, which is currently owned by a consortium of private equity firms including Advent International and Permira Advisors to lower its interest expenses, as well as ease some of its debt, according to Bloomberg.

AI has also increased both the frequency and complexity of cyberattacks and phishing attempts, as fraudsters use the technology to perpetuate more sophisticated schemes. For instance, a popular email scam involves fraudsters sending out false messages to users claiming their McAfee subscriptions are about to expire and offering discounts in a bid to harvest financial and personal information, according to a May 31 report by The Guardian.

McAfee “will never ask for private info,” including social security numbers or bank details, according to a support page on their website regarding email scams.

The company has also moved to upgrade its consumer protection tools as AI-powered fraud and phishing schemes proliferate. In January, for example, the business announced an update to its “Scam Detector” service that now enables customers to check the legitimacy of QR codes and better spot suspicious messages, according to the announcement.