The IT security firm Sophos has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire DIALOGS, a privately-held provider of mobile management products, based in Germany. DIALOGS has customers such as BMW AG, Daimler AG, Siemens AG and ThyssenKrupp, and 20 years of experience in mobile product development.
The firms say that an increased prevalence of smartphones and tablets represents a major shift in the way people and businesses work and collaborate. IT staff at enterprises of all sizes are faced with new challenges and risks in handling and securing an array of corporate and personal devices. That, with the ever-expanding usage of apps and the threat of device loss or theft, reinforces the importance of mobile data protection.
Chris Hazelton, research director, Mobile & Wireless, 451 Research, says: “IT continues to see large numbers of mobile devices coming into the enterprise – both corporate and employee-liable – and is under intense pressure to bring these devices under control. Email was the initial pain point, but management of mobile apps is taking centre stage. Now more than ever, IT needs to focus on app data travelling across these devices. The ability to provide a flexible SaaS MDM offering paired with mobile application management (MAM) will go a long way toward solving the mobility challenges faced by IT.”
Rainer Gawlick, CMO, Sophos, said: “CISOs and CIOs have major concerns about upholding security policies and ensuring compliance for mobile devices without hindering employee productivity. And in this evolving market, with Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) presenting further challenges to IT, our customers need the peace of mind that they can manage and secure all of their devices, irrespective of their users’ device preferences. This is only the beginning of Sophos’ complete security offering for mobile devices and will be complemented by solutions for mobile security and mobile data encryption in the coming months. Joining forces with DIALOGS will allow Sophos to offer fully integrated solutions.”
“We’re excited to be joining a complete security leader with deep background in mobile security,” said Frank Zimmermann, co-founder and managing director, DIALOGS. “Our complementary expertise will further strengthen the Sophos mobile development team, resulting in quicker time-to-market to deliver enterprises the industry’s most comprehensive mobile security offerings.”
