Microsoft (MSFT) is reportedly buying Adallom, an Israeli-based cybersecurity startup for $320 million, according to news first reported Israeli publications Globes and Calcalist.
Adallom paints itself as a new-age security company that focuses not just on corporate data sitting on internal servers and storage, but data that lies beyond a company’s traditional perimeter. This is important as more companies turn to outside providers—so-called software-as-service vendors like Salesforce (CRM), Box (BOX), and others. Microsoft itself is offering more of its own software functions via that model as evidenced by Office 365, which Adallom supports.
In essence, Adallom’s “cloud application security platform” sits between the user (and whatever device she is using) and her applications to monitor traffic, but says it does so in a non-intrusive manner. Adallom had raised roughly $50 million in venture funding from Index Ventures, Sequoia Capital, HP Capital, and others since its founding three years ago.
Given the near-daily news of corporate and government data breaches, tech vendors are trying to arm themselves with the latest-and-greatest defensive tools.
Google’s (GOOG) growth equity arm recently led a $100 million investment arm in Crowdstrike, another cybersecurity startup, for example. In February, Imperva(IMPV) bought Skyfence for about $60 million and in May, Palo Alto Networks(PAN) snapped up CirroSecure. And, Microsoft itself isn’t new to this rodeo: Back in November, the company purchased Aorato, another Israeli security vendor,for about $200 million.
Microsoft had no comment for this report. Adallom could not be reached for comment.
This story was updated at 11:30 a.m. EDT with additional context around security software acquisitions.
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