Craigslist founder is giving away $200 million to prevent cybercrimes against the US

Listen and subscribe to Opening Bid on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

Craig Newmark, the 71-year-old founder and former CEO of classifieds site Craigslist, is alarmed about potential cybersecurity risks in the US.

“The deal is our country is under attack now,” he told Yahoo Finance executive editor Brian Sozzi on the Opening Bid podcast (video above; listen in below). “It’s not like I’m in the recruiting line after Pearl Harbor because my dad volunteered in the ’40s, but I guess that’s what I should be doing.”

Newmark, who stepped down from the company in 2000 but kept a position answering customer complaints, has foregone reaping financial rewards in semi-retirement.

Instead, he started Craig Newmark Philanthropies to primarily invest in projects to protect critical American infrastructure from cyberattacks. He told Sozzi he is now spending $200 million more to address the issue, on top of an initial $100 million pledge revealed in September of this year.

He encouraged other wealthy people to join him in the fight against cyberattacks.

“I tell people, ‘Hey, the people who protect us could use some help. The amounts of money comparatively are small, so why not help out,’” he said.

Cybersecurity has had a banner year in the spotlight, with issues going beyond past annoyances where consumers simply need to change passwords, call a credit bureau, or cancel an account after a breach.

This past summer, a Microsoft (MSFT) Windows update containing a defect hit 8.5 million computers. It resulted in flight cancellations and hampered health and payment services. Concerns swirled about potential infrastructure attacks on a global scale, such as the Paris Olympics.

In October, utility company American Water Works (AWK) announced a cybersecurity attack that temporarily shut down its customer portal and paused billing.

Shares of cybersecurity stocks have subsequently soared: Palo Alto Networks (PANW) and CyberArk Software (CYBR) are up 38% and 53% year to date, respectively. Wall Street is staying bullish on each stock, according to Yahoo Finance analyst recommendation and price target data.

The global financial impact of cybercrimes could reach $13.82 trillion by 2028 from $9.22 trillion in 2024, the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia estimated.

The need for municipalities and other government entities to act rather than react remains paramount, warns Newmark.

“I think a lot about this,” said Newmark. “I’ve started to fund networks of smart volunteers who can help people protect infrastructure, particularly [for] the small companies and utilities across the country who are responsible for most of our electrical and power supplies, transportation infrastructure, [and] food distribution.”

Story Continues

“A lot of these systems have no protection, so an adversary could just compromise them, saying unless you do what we need, we can start shutting off these things,” he continued. Should that happen, recovery “could take weeks and weeks without your water supply or electricity.”

Newmark is a self-professed tech nerd. The IBM alum worked at Big Blue for 17 years before founding Craigslist in 1995.

While he continues to follow Craigslist from afar, Newmark said these days he’s most focused on ensuring his wealth ends up at the correct causes.

“My deal is that I want all that money to go straight to the nonprofit world — I just have to figure out where that goes and how do I handle it over the next five to 20 years,” Newmark said.

Three times each week, Yahoo Finance Executive Editor Brian Sozzi fields insight-filled conversations and chats with the biggest names in business and markets on Opening Bid. You can find more episodes on our video hub or watch on your preferred streaming service.

Grace Williams is a writer for Yahoo Finance.

Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance