Network Associates yesterday announced a deal to acquire intrusion protection company IntruVert Networks for $100 million in cash.

IntruVert Networks is a privately held company that has created an architecture designed to offer real-time network intrusion detection and prevention systems for enterprise and government networks.

IntruVert's architecture integrates patented signature, anomaly, and Denial of Service (DoS) detection techniques on an appliance hardware platform designed for multi-gigabit speeds. IntruVert's appliances include the IntruShield 4000 and IntruShield 2600, both of which come with a centralised, web-based management system that provides security policy management, analysis and response management tools.

Network Associates said IntruVert's technology provides a pro-active approach to blocking cracker and viral attacks.

After two years of operation, IntruVert's customers include Prudential Financial, HomeBanc Mortgage Corporation and the United States House of Representatives.

The deal is subject to regulatory authority and shareholder approval. This is no forgone conclusion, given an ongoing SEC investigation of Network Associates books and plans by the company to restate earnings for three previous years. Nonetheless the two companies expect to close the deal within the next 45 days.

Last May, Network Associates ceased development of its own CyberCop vulnerability scanner and intrusion-detection product and announced plans to merge the technology into its Sniffer network analyser product.

The decision was part of a major reorganisation at Network Associates last year which saw technology from its PGP Security division folded into other Network Associates' products and the February 2002 divestment of the unit's core Guantlet firewall business to Secure Computing. ®

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