HP to acquire software security firm

Hewlett Packard Corp. is taking another step into the services arena by buying Fortify Software Inc., a privately held software security assurance company in San Mateo, Calif. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Fortify initially will be a stand-alone entity to ensure continuity while targeting the security market, HP said in an announcement today.

Over time, Fortify will be integrated into the HP Software and Solutions business. Its products will become part of the Business Technology Optimization application portfolio, available through HP’s sales and service channels.

The companies’ history of collaboration includes the introduction in February of Hybrid 2.0, an advanced security analysis technology that strengthened an earlier integration announced in June 2009, the HP statement said.

With the acquisition of Fortify, HP will be able to accelerate development of this technology to give clients the accuracy and prioritization they need around security vulnerabilities to build scalable enterprise application security programs.

The acquisition also will allow HP to offer a solution that helps organizations reduce business risk, meet compliance regulations and protect against malicious application attacks by integrating security assurance seamlessly across the application life cycle.

Fortify’s leadership in static application security analysis and HP’s expertise in dynamic application security analysis will help organizations improve the security of their applications and services, said Bill Veghte, executive vice president of HP Software and Solutions.