As the digital world expands, the risk of cyberattacks is increasing, and security experts must stay vigilant to safeguard against potential breaches. As digital risks grow, big companies are acquiring others in the cybersecurity field to enhance their capabilities and stay ahead of evolving threats.
In a year marked by heightened cybersecurity concerns and vendor consolidations, the industry saw a number of high-profile mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
Here’s a look back at our coverage of the top cybersecurity acquisitions of 2023:
Cisco buys Splunk in $28-billion deal.
Cisco has agreed to buy Splunk for about $28 billion in an all-cash deal that will significantly reinforce the network and cloud giant’s security software portfolio. Splunk’s software platform is known for its wide-reaching ability to search, monitor and analyze data from a variety of systems. Network security teams can use this information to gain better visibility into and gather insights about network traffic, firewalls, intrusion detection systems, intrusion prevention systems, and security information and event management (SIEM) systems, from on-premises and or its cloud-based package, according to Splunk. Cisco said in a press release that it expects to bring all those capabilities and more to its security portfolio.
Broadcom Completes VMware Acquisition
Broadcom closed its $69 billion acquisition of virtualization technology giant VMware, 18 months after first unveiling the deal, in one of the largest acquisitions in the history of the IT industry. The completion of the acquisition (valued at $69 billion including $61 million in cash and Broadcom’s assumption of $8 billion in VMware debt) followed a prolonged process of obtaining regulatory approvals for the acquisition from regulatory authorities around the world. Broadcom immediately announced that it was reorganizing VMware into four divisions (VMware Cloud Foundation, Tanzu, Software-Defined Edge and Application Networking and Security)
Thales completes Imperva acquisition.
Defense technology and security provider Thales has completed its acquisition of Imperva ahead of the anticipated closing estimate of first-quarter 2024. The combination will create a cybersecurity firm with more than 5,800 cybersecurity experts across 68 countries and $2.6 billion in projected revenue for 2024.Thales said the acquisition will add application security, data security, and identity and access management capabilities to its global portfolio.
IBM acquires Polar Security
Tech giant IBM has acquired data security posture management (DPSM) provider Polar Security to bolster its cloud security offerings. Polar Security’s platform helps to manage shadow data –sensitive data not being tracked or managed. DSPM reveals where sensitive data is stored, who has access to it, how it is used, and identifies vulnerabilities with the underlying security posture, including policies, configurations, or data usage. Polar Security’s DSPM technology will be integrated into IBM’s Guardium family of data security products.
Check Point acquires Perimeter 81
Global cybersecurity firm Check Point Software has agreed to buy security service edge (SSE) company Perimeter 81 for about $490 million. Perimeter, launched in 2018, combines cloud and on-device protection within SSE, offering zero-trust access and full mesh connectivity between users, branches, and applications. With the advent of hybrid work and the rise of cloud transformation, the demand for security services that expand beyond the network perimeter is increasing, by leveraging Perimeter 81’s capabilities and integrating them into the Check Point Infinity platform we continue with our vision to deliver the best security through comprehensive, collaborative, and consolidated solutions.
CrowdStrike acquires Bionic.
CrowdStrike has agreed to acquire application security posture management (ASPM) firm Bionic to enhance its cloud-native application protection platform (CNAPP). CrowdStrike said the deal makes it the first cybersecurity company to deliver complete code-to-runtime cloud security from one unified platform. CrowdStrike plans to offer Bionic ASPM as an independent offering and fully integrated as a capability of Falcon Cloud Security, part of the AI-powered CrowdStrike Falcon platform.
Palo Alto acquires Talon Cyber Security
Palo Alto Networks has agreed to buy enterprise browser technology startup Talon Cyber Security for an undisclosed amount. Talon’s Enterprise Browser platform, which allows security teams to gain visibility and control over all work-related SaaS and web activity on all devices, including personal and unmanaged endpoints, will be combined with Palo Alto’s Prisma SASE. The combination will enable users to securely access business applications from any device, including mobile and other non-corporate devices while delivering seamless user experiences, the companies said in a press release.
Palo Alto acquires Dig Security
Palo Alto Networks acquire Dig Security, an Israeli cloud security start-up specializing in data security posture management (DSPM). The emerging domain addresses deep data-related risks in the cloud. The acquisition comes at a time when 70% of organizations have data stored in public clouds, the increasing adoption of generative AI technologies, and the relentless surge in the volume and impact of cloud data breaches. This underscores the essential role of DSPM in any robust cloud security strategy, Palo Alto Networks noted.
Cisco acquires Lightspin Technologies
Software and service giant Cisco has agreed to buy privately held cloud security software Lightspin Technologies for an undisclosed amount. Lightspin offers end-to-end cloud security posture management (CSPM) across cloud-native resources. The company will join Cisco’s emerging technologies and incubation (ET&I) business.
Cisco acquires Armorblox.
Cisco has agreed to purchase email security platform Armorblox for an undisclosed amount. The networking giant will take advantage of Armorblox’ s natural language processing, predictive and generative artificial intelligence capabilities to help its customers better understand the security risks they face. Armorblox uses these technologies and multiple advanced machine learning models to analyze thousands of signals, including user identity and behavior, and the content and context of communications, to protect against threats that target human workers. Its focus is on stopping business email compromise and targeted phishing attacks, as well as protecting sensitive data.
Proofpoint acquires Tessian.
Cybersecurity and compliance company Proofpoint has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Tessian, which offers a Cloud-native, API-enabled inbound and outbound email protection solution. Tessian’s platform uses advanced AI to automatically detect and guard against both accidental data loss and evolving email threats. The acquisition is expected to close in late 2023 to early 2024, subject to closing conditions, including regulatory approval.
Armor acquires Quantum Security
Cloud and hybrid cloud security solutions provider Armor has acquired Singapore-based cybersecurity firm Quantum Security to enhance its capabilities in cloud security and IT risk. Quantum specializes in cloud automation and services. Armor, as a cloud-native cybersecurity company, understands the unique challenges of securing hybrid cloud and offers comprehensive and scalable security solutions to protect critical data and applications while ensuring compliance with security standards such as PCI, HIPAA, GDPR and many more. Quantum Security’s expertise in cloud automation and services will complement Armor’s existing capabilities and help the company deliver more comprehensive solutions to its customers.
Arctic Wolf acquires Revelstoke.
Security operations provider Arctic Wolf has announced its intent to acquire Revelstoke. The company intends to incorporate Revelstoke’s SOAR platform into its Security Operations Cloud and Concierge Delivery Model. SOAR is fast-becoming a core requirement for an effective security operations program; however, many existing solutions lack the simplicity, interoperability, and scalability to leverage SOAR technologies as a seamless extension of threat detection and response. By combining Arctic Wolf’s comprehensive Security Operations portfolio with Revelstoke’s unique approach to security automation, we believe we will be able to accelerate our innovation cycle and will deliver the most effective threat protection on the market in an efficient and scalable manner.
Snyk acquires Reviewpad.
Code vulnerability scanning platform Snyk has acquired Reviewpad, a service that automates pull requests and issues workflows. “With technological progress depending on the human ability to create and modify software systems, Reviewpad was founded to allow developers to safely contribute to any codebase as fast as possible. Snyk’ s values are aligned with our core values, and together we will bring more developer and security teams together so that more of the world’s millions of developers can benefit from DevSecOps collaboration.
Accenture acquires Brazil-based Morphus.
Accenture has acquired privately held cyber defense, risk management, and cyber threat intelligence services provider Morphus for an undisclosed amount. Brazil-based Morphus provides red and blue team services; governance, risk, and compliance services; enterprise risk management; cyber strategy; threat intelligence; and managed security services.
This brings end of this security coverage. Thanks for visiting TheCyberThrone. If you like us please follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
