BAE Systems completes acquisition of cyber security firm SilverSky

British multinational defence and aerospace giant BAE Systems has said that it has completed the purchase of Perimeter Internetworking Corp, which trades as SilverSky, a commercial cyber service provider for approximately $232 million (£144 million).

The acquisition, announced in October, will increase BAE's footprint in the fast-growing US cyber security market, which includes all digital equipment such as computers and smartphones and all networks including internet.

New York-based SilverSky is a leading provider of independent cloud-based security services including email protection services, attack protection, network security services and managed application services that protect critical information.

SilverSky has operations in the US and the Philippines with around 5,500 customers covering diverse industrial sectors including financial services, retail, healthcare, energy, critical infrastructure and manufacturing sectors, and employs approximately 400 staff.

BAE said that the acquisition has been funded from the company's existing cash resources.

The company's chief executive Ian King said, SilverSky's cloud-based email and network security solutions complement our existing portfolio and increase our presence in the US, a very significant market for the IT security.''

The enlarged business will offer customers an attractive suit of products and services to protect critical information and networks from rapidly growing threat of digital crime,'' King added.

BAE expects the cyber security market will grow at around 15-20 per cent annually.

SilverSky's highly skilled and experienced workforce and management will become part of BAE's Applied Intelligence's Commercial Solutions division and will be led by SilverSky's chief executive officer, Tim Harvey.

Farnborough, England-based BAE, the maker of Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets, is a leading European provider of advanced defence, aerospace and security solutions.

The company has operations in six continents, employing over 80,000 personnel and its 2013 revenue was around $22 billion.

BAE's Applied Intelligence division helps customers to protect and enhance their critical assets in the digital age. The division's key operating domains include cyber security, financial crime, communications intelligence and digital transformation.

Business enterprises and government departments use BAE's solutions to protect and enhance their physical infrastructure, mission-critical systems, valuable intellectual property, corporate information, reputation and customer relationships, competitive advantage and financial success.

In another deal over the weekend, BAE has also said that it has agreed to acquire Texas-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance products company Eclipse Electronic Systems (EES) from leading specialty products and equipment maker Esterline Technologies Corpn for $28 million.

BAE's chief operating officer Tom Arseneault said that the acquisition is part of the company's strategy to invest in advanced technologies critical to US national security and defence needs.

"By combining Eclipse Electronic Systems' products with BAE Systems' existing ISR capabilities, we will be able to support our customers' requirements for reliance, and smaller, lighter, and more power-efficient sensor solutions," he said.

In November, BAE and French aircraft maker Dassault Aviation signed a deal with the UK and French governments to study the technology needed for the creation of drones, which could eventually replace the current generation of fighter jets. (See: BAE Systems, Dassault Aviation in £120- million contract for military drones study).