Global security provider prepares to extend security offerings
with acquisition of firewall technology
Sophos, a world leader in computer security for businesses,
announced today that it has experienced strong market demand for
its converged security products, with an increase in turnover of
36% to £55.5 million for the year ended March 2004.
As the company prepares for the next fiscal year, it has
acquired an award-winning client firewall technology and expertise
in a non-exclusive transfer deal with Agnitum Ltd. Sophos will use
Agnitum's Outpost Pro product as a technology base to engineer an
industrial strength solution for future integration into Sophos's
suite of products designed specifically for networked
environments.
In mid-February Sophos will announce significant product
upgrades that incorporate a number of benefits, including advanced
technologies which enhance the proactive interception of new
viruses and emerging spam campaigns.
"Sophos is committed to providing a best-of-breed integrated
security suite for its customers, which is why we've chosen to
acquire award-winning firewall technology," said Jan Hruska,
chief executive officer, Sophos. "Our consistent performance and
impressive growth year-on-year proves that the market appreciates
our strong focus on business markets and our efforts to meet
customer demand for simplified, consolidated endpoint and gateway
protection against the latest security threats."
Over the past 16 months, and with the consolidation of anti-spam
protection and email policy enforcement protection into its product
portfolio, Sophos has successfully moved from being an established
anti-virus firm to a respected security company with an expert
focus on gateway and endpoint solutions. In the UK alone, sales of
Sophos PureMessage, the company's consolidated email gateway
protection, have increased 100-fold since April 2004. Sophos
products are used by over 50% of the companies listed in the latest
FTSE 100 as well as protecting many well known names such as Marks
& Spencer, Orange, Oxford University and Sainsbury's.
"Increasingly organizations are looking for flexible, easy to
manage security solutions that address the spectrum of threats as
well as protect data through policy enforcement and regulatory
compliance, said Chris Christiansen, Program Vice President for
IDC's Security Products program. "By broadly defining the threat
environment, recognizing the convergence and complexity of those
threats and adding personal firewall to its offering, Sophos is
ahead of the curve in providing protection at all points of the
network."
Analyst group IDC predicts the security software market as a
whole to grow at 16.9% annually between 2003 and 2008. In the last
financial year, Sophos's turnover grew at more than twice this rate
- 36% - demonstrating the company's continued momentum in capturing
market share in the highly competitive security market. Sophos's
customer base has grown 18% in the same period, with an impressive
global renewal rate of 76%.
Employee numbers at Sophos have also increased - by 38% in the
past 12 months, with 920 staff now employed globally, of which 460
are based at the global HQ in Abingdon, UK. To further fuel growth,
the company is currently undertaking a recruitment drive to hire an
additional 120 new staff before the end of this fiscal year.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.