EMC/RSA acquires electronic threat detection firm NetWitness

Network World - EMC Corp. today announced it has acquired NetWitness Corp., security company that makes the NextGen visibility monitoring system to detect electronic threats and malware-based attacks. EMC said NetWitness will operate as part of RSA.

The EMC/RSA buy of the privately held Herndon, Va.-based NetWitness had been anticipated by industry insiders, and the topic of a lot of industry buzz for a while.

MORE ON MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS: Tech M&A deals of 2011

Robert Breza, managing director at RBC Capital Markets, recently remarked with some irony that if RSA had been using the NetWitness monitoring system, RSA might in theory might have been spared the painful experience of the data breach it says occurred in which sensitive information about the RSA SecurID product was stolen by attackers.

RSA has not provided detail on exactly what was stolen in the data breach, but has now confirmed the initial attack started with attackers tricking some RSA employees into opening a malware-laden Excel spreadsheet in an Adobe Flash Player zero-day attack.

The EMC acquisition of NetWitness officially closed on April 1, the company says, without disclosing the acquisition price. EMC/RSA issued a statement saying the company expects to combine the NetWitness monitoring and analysis technology with RSA's enVision security information and event monitoring platform, RSA Data Loss Prevention Suite and RSA CyberCrime Intelligence service. Amit Yoran, CEO of NetWitness, said, "Joining RSA is a strategic move that will deliver significant benefits for NetWitness customers, partners and employees."

Read more about wide area network in Network World's Wide Area Network section.