Facebook acquires security startup PrivateCore

PanARMENIAN.Net - Facebook is hoping its latest acquisition will help protect users from malware and other security threats. The company announced Thursday, Aug 7, it was acquiring PrivateCore, a security startup that focuses on securing remote servers, Mashable reported.

Facebook is hoping PrivateCore's technology will help make its own systems more secure, according to Facebook chief security officer Joe Sullivan’s post.

"Their vCage technology protects servers from persistent malware, unauthorized physical access, and malicious hardware devices, making it safer to run any application in outsourced, hosted or cloud environments," Sullivan wrote. "I believe that PrivateCore’s technology and expertise will help support Facebook’s mission to help make the world more open and connected, in a secure and trusted way."

Terms of the deal were not disclosed — but Reuters said the Palo Alto-based security company raised $2.25 million in funding in 2012.

"Working together with Facebook, there is a huge opportunity to pursue our joint vision at scale with incredible impact," PrivateCore CEO Oded Horovitz said in a statement. "Over time, Facebook plans to deploy our technology into the Facebook stack to help protect the people who use Facebook."

The news comes in the wake of what security researchers have called one of the biggest security breaches in the history of the Internet. A group of Russian hackers reportedly stole more than 1.2 billion passwords, according to the firm that conducted the 18-month long investigation that uncovered the breach.