Symantec to acquire security consultants @Stake

IDG News Service - Symantec Corp. has agreed to acquire @Stake Inc., a Cambridge, Mass.-based provider of IT security consulting services.

After closing the deal, expected in October, Symantec plans to integrate @Stake's services and applications into its global professional services offerings, the company said in a statement.

Symantec didn't disclose the terms of the agreement. It plans to keep @Stake at the Cambridge headquarters for at least the short term and retain as many consultants as possible, Symantec spokeswoman Linda Smith Munya said. @Stake will be integrated into Symantec Global Services and Support, she said.

Venture-backed @Stake counts several of the world's biggest financial, software and telecommunications companies among its customers, Symantec said. Through its SmartRisk services, @Stake helps companies secure applications, infrastructure, networks and storage systems. It also helps customers through proprietary applications, including @Stake LC 5 for password management, @Stake WebProxy for securing Web applications, and @Stake SmartRisk Analyzer for finding vulnerabilities in software applications. It also has Centers of Excellence, where it studies security flaws in operating systems, applications, network protocols and devices.

Being acquired by Cupertino, Calif.-based security giant Symantec will give @Stake the resources to support its customers' long-term security needs and reach a bigger global customer base, Symantec said.

@Stake faced controversy last September when it fired Chief Technology Officer Dan Geer after he co-authored a report with other security researchers that criticized Microsoft Corp.'s monopoly hold on the software industry. A company official criticized the report at that time as one-sided.