• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechMicrosoft

Microsoft set to gobble up third Israeli cybersecurity startup in year, source says

Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 21, 2015, 3:38 PM ET
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella delivers a keynote address during the Microsoft Build developer conference.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella delivers a keynote address during the Microsoft Build developer conference.Photograph by Justin Sullivan — Getty Images

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella apparently has a voracious appetite for Israeli cybersecurity firms.

The tech giant acquired Aorato, an Israeli application firewall startup, for a reported $200 million in November of last year. In July, it picked up Adallom, an Israeli cloud security company, for a reported $320 million. Now the Redmond, Wash.-based company plans to add Secure Islands, an Israeli data security firm, to its portfolio.

The Israeli business daily Globes, one of the first outlets to report on the Adallom acquisition, broke news of the pending Secure Islands deal on Wednesday. A source with knowledge of the deal has since confirmed the substance of the report to Fortune.

Secure Islands, co-founded in 2006 by brothers Aki and Yuval Eldar in Beit Dagan, Israel, helps control access to corporate data and files with its software product, IQProtector. If a document being passed within an organization contains Social Security numbers, for instance, the tool might automatically encrypt the file according to company policies.

When might that be useful? Let’s say you’re the CEO of—oh, I don’t know—Sony Pictures Entertainment and you would prefer to keep your email messages private. Secure Islands could protect that information from prying eyes, even if it gets stolen.

The company has raised $20 million to date, reports Globes, citing Israeli Venture Capital data. The venture capital arm of Swiss banker Credit Suisse (CS) reportedly contributed more than half of that amount—$12 million—in Sept. 2014.

Other startups in the data security space include Ionic Security and Vera.

Paired with Microsoft’s other cloud and cybersecurity acquisitions, the Secure Islands deal could pose a threat to a category of companies known as cloud access security brokers, which regulate how employees connect to cloud-based software-as-a-service applications. Examples of companies that compete in the space include Netskope, Skyhigh Networks, and Ciphercloud.

Microsoft (MSFT) has purchased other Israeli firms recently, too. It bought Equivio, a text analysis service, in January and a month later acquired N-trig, a digital pen company, both for undisclosed sums.

Earlier this month, the Japanese telecom giant Softbank led a $59 million investment in Cybereason, an Israeli cybersecurity firm. Around the same time, the Israel-based cybersecurity company CyberArk (CYBR) picked up the Israeli computer threat-monitoring firm Viewfinity for $30.5 million. Two months earlier, CyberArk bought another Israeli cybersecurity company, CyberIntel, which analyzes and identifies digital attacks, for about $20 million.

Per the Secure Islands deal, a Microsoft spokeswoman said via email that the company does not comment “on rumors or speculation.” Secure Islands did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Follow Robert Hackett on Twitter at @rhhackett. Read his technology and cybersecurity coverage at fortune.com/author/robert-hackett. And subscribe to Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily newsletter on the business of technology, where he writes a weekly column.

For more on Microsoft’s spate of acquisitions, watch this video.

About the Author
Robert Hackett
By Robert Hackett
Instagram iconLinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

NewslettersCIO Intelligence
The ROI for AI isn’t one-size-fits-all, says data storage CTO
By John KellMarch 25, 2026
11 minutes ago
PoliticsDonald Trump
Trump taps Zuckerberg, Huang, Ellison for tech advisory council—but excludes Musk and Altman
By Sharon GoldmanMarch 25, 2026
59 minutes ago
EuropeLetter from London
Rishi Sunak is giving advice to CEOs on AI. Here are his golden rules
By Kamal AhmedMarch 25, 2026
2 hours ago
SuccessEntrepreneurs
‘Wealth doesn’t erase your problems—it magnifies them’: One serial entrepreneur’s brutally honest take on making it
By Sydney LakeMarch 25, 2026
4 hours ago
Current price of Ethereum for March 25, 2026
Personal FinanceEthereum
Current price of Ethereum for March 25, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMarch 25, 2026
5 hours ago
SuccessProductivity
Workers are using AI to sneak out for spin classes and skip lunch meetings—and new research shows they’re clawing back 30 minutes a day
By Orianna Rosa RoyleMarch 25, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

Magazine
The youngest-ever female CEO of a Fortune 500 company is fighting Trump's cuts to keep Medicaid strong
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
1 day ago
Commentary
The Treasury just declared the U.S. insolvent. The media missed it
By Fortune EditorsMarch 23, 2026
2 days ago
Success
Palantir’s billionaire CEO says only two kinds of people will succeed in the AI era: trade workers — ‘or you’re neurodivergent’
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
1 day ago
Energy
Nobel laureate Paul Krugman calls it 'treason': $580 million in suspicious oil futures traded minutes before Trump's Iran reversal
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
23 hours ago
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of March 24, 2026
By Fortune EditorsMarch 24, 2026
1 day ago
Economy
It took 200 years for national debt to hit $1 trillion. Annual interest alone now exceeds that—a 'crushing legacy we must reverse,' says budget chair
By Fortune EditorsMarch 23, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.