Tripwire is set to be acquired by Belden for $710 million (£453.5 million).
The compliance and vulnerabilty management vendor is set to be acquired by Belden, a vendor of end-to-end signal transmission solutions designed to meet the mission-critical network infrastructure needs of industrial, enterprise and broadcast markets.
Both companies are focused on the delivery of technology solutions that support secure, reliable critical infrastructure and together. the companies will offer businesses a unified view of security risk across the extended enterprise.
Jim Johnson, CEO of Tripwire, said that the companies had partnered in the past that was focused on improving critical infrastructure cyber security in manufacturing organisations. “The partnership was a wonderful opportunity for both companies to experience first-hand the strengths of our respective products and technology,” he said.
“Partnering with Belden will allow us to expand more quickly and effectively into their core markets and this will drive significant revenue for both companies. Together, Tripwire and Belden can deliver proven, reliable technology into this market more effectively than either company alone.”
John Stroup, president and CEO of Belden, said: “We look forward to incorporating Tripwire technology into selected Belden products and providing Tripwire with access to existing Belden customers that are anxious to improve the robustness and security of their networks. This positions Belden as a leader in helping customers deploy and secure the Internet of Things.”
Tripwire, which was acquired by investment firm Thoma Bravo in 2011, acquired nCircle in 2013 to automated security and compliance auditing solutions to its compliance and event management range of products.
Andrew Kellett, principal analyst, security at Ovum, told IT Security Guru that he was not familiar with Belden, but he did not see it as a “natural acquirer” of security product and expertise. “I agree, it does look more like a takeover and rebrand to use Tripwire as a component of the Beldon portfolio,” he said.
“I also wonder why Thoma Bravo decided to jettison Tripwire from its security portfolio
while retaining nCircle, Novell, and NetIQ technology. Is it about moving on a product set that no longer fits in with their requirements or will others in the Thoma Bravo stable follow shortly.”
Bob Tarzey, analyst and director at Quocirca, said that he was not familiar with Belden either, but with a range of IoT-oriented products, he assumed that the company recognised the need to up the ante when it comes to managing software security. “It would also have found the nCircle assets that Tripwire acquired in 2013 useful for end point monitoring and so on,” he said.
“As for Tripwire itself, I guess the deal was seen as good for it to make the most of its investment and get a good price at the right time. I am sure Belden will maintain a presence in the vulnerability management market.”
