Even though technology investors are a lot less generous with their capital than they were last year, raising funding for a bold new venture can still be a walk in the park if one has the kind of track record Nick Halstead does. The serial entrepreneur founded and led social analytics giant DataSift Inc. as chief executive before starting CognitiveLogic Inc. three weeks ago, a time frame in which he already managed to secure $3 million to jump-start operations.

The four-man team is looking to replicate the success of threat intelligence sharing networks like IBM Corp.’s X-Force Exchange in the information brokerage space. CognitiveLogic will attempt to aggregate business data from multiple organizations in a given market and integrate the disparate records into a single pool of knowledge greater than the sum of its parts. The startup then plans to anonymize the combined whole in a way that ensures better privacy than what more established rivals such as Acxiom Corp and Oracle Corp. currently offer.

Halstead detailed in an interview this morning that much of the competition only provides the minimum level of security needed to meet client organizations’ compliance requirements. Upping the ante could give CognitiveLogic a valuable edge amid the rapid growth in cyberattacks against the enterprise, while also making its own platform less vulnerable to hacking. As a data broker poised to gain hold of valuable business information spanning multiple organizations and sectors, the startup can expect to be targeted at least as much as its future customers.

But before CognitiveLogic can start worrying about the logistics, Halstead will need to come up with a way to convince often rivaling companies to share their internal data with one another. It’s won’t be easy given how important information has become for decision-making over recent years, but the startup’s investors seem to be confident in its ability to push through with the plan.  Mark Suster of Upfront Ventures, which previously backed DataSift, said in a canned quote he was sold even before hearing the full elevator pitch. Whether the market will share his enthusiasm remains to be seen.

Image via Geralt