Microsoft Buys Israeli Company CyberX To Boost Azure IoT Security Capabilities

Microsoft confirmed on Monday that it was acquiring Israeli cybersecurity company CyberX. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Founded in 2013 by CEO Omer Schneider and CTO Nir Giller, CyberX develops cybersecurity solutions for the industrial and critical infrastructure IoT (Internet of Things) sectors including energy, oil and gas, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, mining, water utilities, and building management. The company had previously raised $48 million from investors including Qualcomm Ventures and Inven Capital.

With the acquisition, CyberX will “complement the existing Azure IoT security capabilities, and extends to existing devices including those used in industrial IoT, Operational Technology and infrastructure scenarios,” wrote Michal Braverman-Blumenstyk, CVP, CTO, Cloud + AI Security at Microsoft, and Sam George, CVP, Cloud + AI Azure IoT, in a blog post. CyberX helps customers discover existing IoT assets, and “manage and improve the security posture of those devices,” they wrote.

“Gaining this visibility is not only critical for understanding where security risks may exist and then mitigating those risks, but it is also a fundamental step to securely enable smart manufacturing, smart grid and other digitization use cases across production facilities and the supply chain,” added Braverman-Blumenstyk and George.

By integrating CyberX, Microsoft will now provide “a simpler approach to unified security governance across both IT and industrial networks, as well as end-to-end security across managed and unmanaged IoT devices, enabling organizations to quickly detect and respond to advanced threats in converged networks,” the parties wrote in a press statement.

“CyberX’s technology and team are a great addition to Microsoft,” Braverman-Blumenstyk said in the press announcement.

Rumors of the planned acquisition date back several months. Haaretz reported in May that sources have indicated the deal is valued at approximately $165 million.

Schneider said in the statement that he and Giller “founded CyberX with the goal of delivering a scalable solution that would be easy to deploy and reduce risk for enterprises worldwide. We’re thankful to our loyal customers and partners as well as to our dedicated employees whose innovation and hard work made it possible for us to reach this important milestone, and also to our investors for their ongoing support.”

“By joining forces with Microsoft, we will rapidly scale our business and technology to securely enable digital transformation for many more organizations,” said Giller.

The founders will join Microsoft as part of the business unit managed by Yuval Eldar, Microsoft GM of IoT Security, and the platform will continue to be enhanced and supported by CyberX personnel, according to the statement.