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Mergers & Acquisitions

Twitter acquires web malware fighter Dasient

Dan Kaplan January 24, 2012

Twitter, a hotbed of malware due to its extreme popularity, has made one of its first-ever security acquisitions with the purchase of Dasient.

Symantec extends cloud offerings

Greg Masters January 16, 2012

Symantec has acquired LiveOffice, a privately held cloud-based archiving provider, for approximately $115 million.

Twitter makes available some code from Whisper Systems buy

Dan Kaplan December 20, 2011

Twitter, which recently acquired year-old Android security start-up Whisper Systems, announced Tuesday that it is making some of the company's open-source code publicly available.

Blue Coat acquired by equity firm for $1.3 billion

Angela Moscaritolo December 09, 2011

Thoma Bravo snared its fifth IT security company since 2009 in a high-priced deal to buy Blue Coat Systems, a company that recently found itself immersed in controversy.

Twitter buys Whisper Systems for Android security

Dan Kaplan November 28, 2011

Twitter has acquired a start-up that makes security and management solutions for Android devices.

Check Point adds Dyanasec for governance, risk, compliance

Dan Kaplan October 31, 2011

Check Point Software Technologies bolstered its portfolio Monday with the acquisition of privately held Dynasec, a 7-year-old, Israel-based provider of governance, risk management and compliance solutions.

IBM announces purchase of Q1 Labs

Greg Masters October 04, 2011

IBM on Tuesday announced it is buying privately held Q1 Labs, a Waltham, Mass.-based vendor of security event and log management software. The company will be integrated into the newly formed IBM Security Systems division, expected to be led by Q1 Labs CEO Brendan Hannigan. Q1 Labs provides analytics and correlation technology that, it says, can help prevent breaches, such as an employee accessing unauthorized information. Financial terms of the deal, the second SIEM-related acquisition announced Tuesday, were not disclosed.

McAfee to acquire NitroSecurity

Greg Masters October 04, 2011

McAfee on Tuesday announced it is acquiring NitroSecurity, a privately owned security information and event management provider based in Portsmouth, N.H. McAfee said that following the buy, which is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, the integration of NitroSecurity's technology into McAfee ePolicy Orchestrator will give organizations greater visibility into their IT environment. The acquisition is expected to close by the fourth quarter of this year. During 2010, the SIEM market grew from $858 million to $987 million, a growth rate of 15 percent, according to Gartner.

McAfee President Dave DeWalt resigns

Angela Moscaritolo July 13, 2011

Dave DeWalt has resigned from his most as president of McAfee after four years, the Intel subsidiary announced Tuesday. DeWalt, who oversaw the security software firm through its $7.7 billion acquisition by Intel last year, will serve as a non-employee member of McAfee's board. He will be replaced by two new co-presidents: Michael DeCesare, currently McAfee's executive vice president for global operations, and Todd Gebhart, executive vice president and general manager of McAfee's consumer, mobile and small business division. DeCesare and Gebhart will assume their new roles by the third quarter of this year and report to Renee James, Intel's senior vice president and chairman of McAfee.

Symantec buys Clearwell for e-discovery capabilities

Dan Kaplan May 19, 2011

Symantec on Thursday acquired Clearwell Systems, a provider of e-discovery, archiving and backup solutions, for $390 million. According to Symantec, the purchase augments its information management and governance portfolio by allowing customers to manage and discover their information with increased speed, efficiency and scalability. Citing a Gartner report, Symantec said companies with a strategy for content archiving will spend a third less on discovery than organizations without one.

VMware to acquire Shavlik to boost SMB offerings

Angela Moscaritolo May 16, 2011

Virtualization provider VMware has acquired Shavlik Technologies, a provider of cloud-based IT management solutions for small and midsize businesses (SMBs), the companies announced Monday. The deal, the terms of which were not disclosed, is expected to close later this quarter. Following the acquisition, VMware will offer SMBs a full portfolio for managing, monitoring and securing IT environments, the company said. The two vendors already partner to provide VMware GO, a free, web-based service that assists SMBs in the deployment and management of VMware technology.

Thoma Bravo buys Tripwire after it drops IPO plans

Angela Moscaritolo May 11, 2011

Private equity investment firm Thoma Bravo has bought Tripwire, a year after the compliance maker had planned an IPO.

Sophos to acquire UTM maker Astaro

Angela Moscaritolo May 06, 2011

Sophos on Friday announced plans to acquire private network security firm Astaro for an undisclosed sum. Astaro, founded in 2000 and headquartered in Karlsruhe, Germany and Wilmington, Mass., is the world's fourth largest provider of unified threat management (UTM) solutions, Sophos said in a news release. Such technology offers multiple security functions, including network, web, mail and web application protection, through a single platform. Astaro's portfolio will bolster Sophos' existing endpoint, mobile, email, web and data protection capabilities, the company said.

Itself a customer, EMC buys NetWitness for network analysis

Dan Kaplan April 04, 2011

EMC has acquired NetWitness, a fast-growing network monitoring and analysis firm that caters to a slew of Fortune 100 and government customers.

McAfee to acquire Sentrigo

Greg Masters March 23, 2011

McAfee announced it will acquire Sentrigo, a privately owned vendor of database security solutions with U.S. corporate headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The partnership will enable customers to protect their mission-critical database environments, according to the announcement. Following completion of the acquisition, expected to close in April 2011, Sentrigo's team will report to Stuart McClure, SVP and GM of the McAfee risk and compliance business unit. Santa Clara-based McAfee, just acquired by Intel for $7.68 billion, has bought 10 security companies in the past five years, making it the world's largest security technology company.

Google acquires Zynamics for software analysis

Dan Kaplan March 02, 2011

Google has acquired Germany-based Zynamics, maker of software analysis and reverse engineering tools. Terms of the deal, announced Tuesday, were not disclosed. Google will leverage Zynamics solutions to better protect users against malware. "We provide solutions that aim at helping the software analyst to understand the complex relations that exist in modern software and to boost his productivity," according to Zynamics, whose CEO is noted researcher Thomas Dullien, better known by his handle of Halvar Flake. - DK

Feeding frenzy: M&A activity in IT security

Deb Radcliff March 01, 2011

Ravenous merger-and-acquisition activity is telling of a desire by organizations to consolidate their security and operational tasks, especially as threats increase.

Verizon to acquire Terremark for $1.4 billion

Dan Kaplan January 27, 2011

Verizon on Thursday announced plans to acquire Terremark, a managed IT infrastructure and cloud services provider known for its advanced security offerings, for $1.4 billion. The deals boosts Verizon to a major player in the cloud circuit. According to a news release, Verizon plans to operate Terremark as a standalone business unit. "Cloud computing continues to fundamentally alter the way enterprises procure, deploy and manage IT resources, and this combination helps create a tipping point for 'everything-as-a-service,'" said Lowell McAdam, Verizon's president and chief operating officer. - DK

Ready for 2011? Five questions for CISOs

Brian Barnier, ISACA January 18, 2011

Sourcefire picks up Immunent for $21 million

Angela Moscaritolo January 05, 2011

Network security provider Sourcefire on Wednesday announced the acquisition of cloud-based anti-malware start-up Immunent for $21 million. The acquisition expands Sourcefire's portfolio by adding a cloud platform for the delivery of malware protection and extending the company's existing intrusion detection and prevention technologies into the cloud. Immunent, founded in July 2008, serves more than 750,000 users in 192 countries. Sourcefire will retain all full-time Immunent employees, including founders Oliver Friedrichs, Alfred Huger and Adam O'Donnell. - AM

Dell to acquire SecureWorks

Greg Masters January 04, 2011

Dell announced on Tuesday that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire SecureWorks, an Atlanta-based information security service provider.

Despite hot M&A activity, security innovation is safe

Dan Kaplan November 12, 2010

The rise of cloud computing, the smart grid and social media is prompting a new wave of cybersecurity innovation, an SC World Congress speaker said Thursday.

Webroot acquires anti-malware provider Prevx

Angela Moscaritolo November 01, 2010

Internet security firm Webroot on Monday announced that it has acquired cloud-based, anti-malware solutions provider Prevx for an undisclosed sum. U.K.-based Prevx uses behavior-based malware detection to protect consumer and business customers from malware, including zero-day exploits. Boulder, Colo.-based Webroot plans to integrate Prevx's technology into its cloud security services. This is the second cloud acquisition Webroot has made this year, after picking up website classification company BrightCloud in July. — AM

Symantec buys RuleSpace for URL filtering technology

Dan Kaplan October 20, 2010

Symantec has acquired RuleSpace, provider of web content categorization products and services, for an undisclosed sum. Portland, Ore.-based RuleSpace is an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), most attractive to Symantec for its URL filtering technology that is used in enterprise and consumer security solutions. The acquisition was quietly announced - neither company distributed a press release. However, the RuleSpace website on Wednesday said that the company is now part of Symantec. The two reportedly have been close partners, and a deal was rumored. — DK

HID Global to acquire ActivIdentity

Greg Masters October 12, 2010

HID Global, which provides identity assurance solutions, announced that its parent company, ASSA ABLOY, has has acquired Silicon Valley-based ActivIdentity, a provider of authentication and credential management with clients in commercial and government organizations. The acquisition will help Irvine, Calif.-based HID Global expand its physical and logical access control options. The deal is expected to close in December and is subject to regulatory clearances and shareholder approvals. - GM

Two minutes on...

Dan Kaplan October 01, 2010

What does Intel's purchase of McAfee portend?

IBM buys compliance software firm OpenPages

Angela Moscaritolo September 16, 2010

IBM on Wednesday announced that it has agreed to acquire Waltham, Mass.-based risk and compliance management software provider OpenPages for an undisclosed sum. In a news release, IBM said the acquisition will expand its ability to help businesses address risk management and compliance challenges. OpenPages, which will be integrated within IBM's Business Analytics software portfolio, offers solutions to assist organizations with internal audits, vendor risk management and IT risk and compliance management. The company has more than 200 clients, including Barclays, Duke Energy and Carnival Corp. — AM

HP to buy ArcSight for $1.5 billion

Angela Moscaritolo September 13, 2010

Another IT security company was gobbled up by an IT bellwether when HP on Monday announced plans to acquire Cupertino, Calif.-based SIEM provider ArcSight for $1.5 billion.

CA continues cloud buying spree with $200 mil Arcot buy

Angela Moscaritolo August 30, 2010

Continuing its cloud computing buying spree, IT management software provider CA Technologies announced Monday that it plans to acquire authentication solutions provider Arcot for $200 million.