Mimecast has acquired Code42 to expand its Human Risk Management (HRM) Platform. The acquisition gives Mimecast access to Code 42’s insider threat management and data loss prevention technology. The value of the acquisition was not announced.
Marc van Zadelhoff, Chief Executive Officer, Mimecast, said, “Mimecast’s platform stands out in our crowded industry by focusing specifically on the critical moment of risk — a person opening their laptop.
“Unlike fragmented point solutions, Mimecast provides a connected approach that is engineered to offer complete visibility and strategic insight across customers’ ecosystems, enabling intervention that helps them prevent costly incidents caused by insider risk and data exfiltration. Integrating leading solutions like Code42 broadens and deepens our proven security and human risk management capabilities.”
Why Code42?
Mimecast is adding Code42 to its HRM platform to widen its scope. With Code42, it can improve its detection of insider threats. While it has tools to do some of that, Code42’s Incydr solution is cloud-native. It gives Mimecast increased visibility into the cloud instances that its customers are using.
Another boost for Mimecast is that Incydr offers an alternative to existing Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solutions. It uses fine-touch controls that can be tuned to match the severity of any breach rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.
That fine-tuning means that responses are proportional to the risk. The controls within Incydr can inform the HRM on what action to take. For example, it might recommend a training course to a user on how to detect a phishing email better. Alternatively, it could automatically block emails and attachments to reduce risk.
It’s early days, so Mimecast will continue supporting customers of Incydr and Incydr Gov, a FedRAMP version of the tool. Beyond that, the company might look to continue development or move the underlying technology into its existing tooling. However, it will also be sounding out Code42’s customer base because it won’t want to alienate that.
Why Now?
Lately, there has been an increasing interest in the HRM space. Companies are moving away from security awareness training and want more from their providers. That drives acquisitions as vendors build wider toolsets to detect user behaviour and add remedial services.
Praxis Security Labs strengthened its HRM platform with the launch of Praxis Navigator, which it calls a unified HRM solution.
CultureAI recently announced a $10 million Series A funding. While a newer player in the HRM space, it also positions its tools as a unified HRM platform.
Two weeks ago, KnowBe4 acquired Egress. While it doesn’t have an HRM platform per se, its acquisition of Egress allied to its existing tools gives it most of the tools it needs to build one.
Enterprise Times: What does this mean?
The security training market is rapidly changing. Just delivering training is not enough. Customers want a joined-up product for threat detection, training, and remediation. This means we can expect to see many more acquisitions and mergers over the next year.
This deal is good news for Mimecast and Code42 customers. It gives them access to an improved HRM platform and security that existing products will continue to be supported. The question is whether Mimecast will take time to integrate Code42 or make other acquisitions to stay ahead of its competitors.
Mimecast is busy remaking itself into that HRM space. It was an email and collaboration security provider until its acquisition in January of Elevate Security. That gave it an HRM solution that was then updated and released as a new HRM Platform last week. This announcement continues to widen the company’s appeal to existing and new customers.
This change of direction was started under Peter Bauer, the co-founder and previous CEO. In January, the company hired Zadelhoff, formerly CEO of IBM Security. He knows how to handle very large clients and build a business. Under his leadership, Mimecast’s evolution into the HRM space will accelerate.
