Each of Corum’s Top Technology Trends lead to more and freer flowing of data. While that creates opportunity, it also creates greater risks for breaches of confidential data and increased disruption of networks and systems. Analysts say 75% of the enterprise IT security budget is expected to be allocated to rapid detection of threats. However, in 2014 we say that this spending was not enough as we witnessed high profile cyber security attacks creating breaches at companies like Target, Michaels, JP Morgan Chase and others.
The recent damaging attacks on Sony Pictures servers, releasing 100 terabytes of internal files and movies, reprioritized the need for defending against sovereign threats, too. This is creating huge opportunities in M&A for both emerging and mature data security companies. Many of these deals are focused on aggregating threat data and analyzing real-time network traffic to respond to attacks that are in process.
Two important deals this past year were the acquisition of Mandiant by FireEye for $1B, and the multiple acquisitions made by Gemalto in the secure identity sector of SafeNet for $890M, Trub AG, Marquis ID Systems, Cardiff Holdings. And as the Internet of Things, Online Exchanges, Digital Currency Flow and the other trends open up new channels for data to flow through, this domain will only grow in importance.
