Sophos to Acquire Utimaco - Systems Management News On The Web

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AS OF 8/20/2008 9:33AM EST

Sophos to Acquire Utimaco
By Jeff Feinman

July 29, 2008 — Endpoint security and control provider Sophos has announced plans to acquire Utimaco Safeware, a Germany-based company specializing in enterprise data security.

The offer, announced yesterday ,will be tendered in August, according to Sophos executives. Due to German financial regulations, Sophos had to announce its intention to acquire Utimaco prior to making an offer. The German regulator will then have to approve the acquisition. Sophos said it intends to make a cash offer of EUd14.75 per Utimaco share and a total purchase of d217 million.

Executives from both companies said Utimaco’s data security offerings further Sophos’ attempt to lead the market in protecting information and computers from external threats or careless end-user behavior. Utimaco will become a new business unit within Sophos.

Steve Munford, CEO of Sophos, said the company’s future direction integrates information control with existing anti-malware programs in order to make security more manageable.

“Integrating endpoint protection, network access control and encryption provides us with a great platform for innovation as the market continues to focus on securing and controlling information,” Munford said. “Utimaco has great engineering, and their new SafeGuard Enterprise product perfectly addresses the need for sophisticated key management and modular architecture. There is a strong fit with both organizations in engineering and customer service, and we will continue to prioritize investment in these areas.”

Munford said the acquisition process will take a few months.

Related Search Term(s): security, Sophos, Utimaco

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