• by Mark Walsh , January 13, 2009

Goodmail Systems has secured an additional $5 million in funding as part of a $25 million financing round led by Bessemer Venture Partners. Of the $5 million, $4 million was invested by Omidyar Network.

The initial $20 million portion of the third-round funding closed in November. DCM, Emergence Capital Partners and Softbank Capital also participated in the round.

The capital will be used to enhance Goodmail's flagship CertifiedEmail offering, which allows users to authenticate messages from legitimate commercial, government and nonprofit organizations. The aim is to thwart scammers from sending what appear to be legitimate messages used to obtain personal information such as Social Security or credit card numbers.

Clients send their email through Goodmail, which tags each message with a blue-ribbon icon to indicate that it is legitimate. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company handles about 3 billion messages per month.

"Goodmail stands out in a crowded field of companies looking to take the security risks like phishing scams, malware and viruses out of email communication," said Matt Halprin, partner, Omidyar Network, in a statement. "By supporting companies that help foster trust online, Omidyar Network hopes to encourage increased engagement in online platforms."

Started by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam, Omidyar Network is a philanthropic investment firm. Its portfolio companies also include Digg, Meetup, Linden Lab and Guidestar.

Last month, Goodmail disclosed plans to launch a new product this year that will allow Hollywood studios and TV networks to market movies and shows by inserting trailers and promos directly into emails. The company is to begin distributing the system--known as Certified Video--early in 2009 in partnership with AOL, Yahoo, Cox, Comcast and others.