U.S. Computer Security Giant Symantec Acquires Its Second Israeli Startup in a Week

Symantec reportedly spending $270 million to buy SkyCure, whose technology predicts, detects and protects against a broad range of existing and unknown hacker threats against mobile devices

Eliran Rubin

Jul 12, 2017

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A Symantec security app is seen on a phone, May 23, 2017.Credit: THOMAS WHITE/REUTERS

Eliran Rubin

Jul 12, 2017

Just days after it paid a reported $250 million for the Israeli cybersecurity startup Fireglass, the U.S. computer security giant Symantec said on Tuesday it was buying another Israeli startup, Skycure, for what sources said was even more money.

Symantec didn’t disclose what it was paying for Skycure, whose technology predicts, detects and protects against a broad range of existing and unknown hacker threats against mobile devices, but the sum is reportedly $270 million.

Symantec said its researchers discovered more than 600 new vulnerabilities on the iOS and Android operating systems last year and mobile malware detections doubled to a total of 18.4 million. Skycure uses artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to deliver a single, unified solution to proactively protect mobile devices.

“One of the most dangerous assumptions in today’s world is that iOS and other mobile devices that employees bring into the office are safe, but the apps and data on these devices are under increasing attack,” said Symantec CEO Greg Clark.

The company said that it planned to integrate Skycure’s predictive threat detection technology into its own enterprise- and consumer-focused mobile products, including Norton Antivirus. “Mobile is a core component of our strategy and the acquisition of Skycure is a major step forward in executing it,” Clark said.

Like Fireglass, which it agreed to buy last Thursday, Skycure is a young company that is being sold for about 10 times what its investors put into it. Skycure was formed in 2012 by CEO Adi Sharabani and Chief Technology Officer Yair Amit.

Since then it has raised $27.5 million from Foundation Capital, Shasta Ventures, Pitango Venture Capital and New York Life and private investors like Mike Weider, Peter McKay and Lane Bess, the latter a former CEO of Palto Alto Networks. Pitango, an Israeli venture capital fund, has close to a 30% stake in Skycure.