End points have become a security hot spot in response to the number and type of end point devices that are intensifying the overall threat profile for organisations and for customers carrying out financial transactions via the cloud and mobile devices. IBM’s latest proposed acquisition takes it to the heart of this trend. It has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Israel-based security software provider Trusteer. Financial terms were not disclosed but media reports suggest it will pay $800m for the company, who has offices in Tel Aviv and Boston.
Trusteer is focussed on mobile and application security, malware and advanced security threats (see Security opportunities in a cloud and mobile world for a run-down of the types of threats) and has a customer base in the banking sector including what it describes as 10 of the top banks in the UK. It brings IBM some valuable assets including Security-as-a-Service which we have tipped as a growth area and complements IBM’s expanding SaaS assets. It also brings counter-fraud and Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) protection and the tools to secure mobile transactions, which are also security hotspots.
The other significant part of the proposed deal is the establishment of a 200-strong cyber-security software lab in Israel. It will gather data from 30m+ endpoints and analyse it for real time actionable intelligence. This is an interesting proposal. There is value in volume but so much data is locked up inside individual organisations or distributed across the cloud. There is opportunity from aggregating and analysing it (in an anonymous way and with due respect for privacy). Security software vendors have been doing this to an extent for years but broader exploration in this area could open up new types of services opportunities for security and other software and services providers. Few providers have really taken advantage of the volume of distributed data available via the cloud and mobile devices.