Sophos Acquires Secureworks for $859 Million to Create a Force Against Cyber Threats

Sophos and Secureworks merged for $859 million, which will provide expertise in managed detection, response and advance threat intelligence.

Sophos and Secureworks, two cybersecurity leaders, have entered into a definitive agreement under which Sophos will acquire Secureworks and pay approximately $859 million in all cash. The acquisition, a Thoma Bravo company, will help Sophos to improve its managed security services and advanced threat detection.

The merger seeks to complement Sophos’s full portfolio of security solutions with the security operations capabilities of Secureworks especially through its Taegis platform. This combination is anticipated to offer comprehensive ‘managed detection and response’ and ‘extended detection and response’ systems which will be accessible to enterprises of any size around the world.

"Secureworks is unique in that they have a very unique offering" said Sophos’s Chief Executive Officer Joe Levy, ‘where their Taegis XDR platform stands out.’ This acquisition is a good first step toward enabling a safer cyberspace.”

Details on the deal, which according to two people familiar with the matter includes a cash payment of $8.50 per share, a 28 percent premium to the recent stock price, have not been disclosed. This small premium is expected to help secureworks’ shareholders, including Dell Technologies.

Wendy Thomas, Secureworks’s Chief Executive Officer, noted that their strategies are on the same trajectory and added that the integrated Sophos-Secureworks solutions will help organizations fortify their defenses against escalating cyber threats.

This acquisition also speaks to the growing demand for sophisticated cybersecurity in light of the changes in the threat landscape, particularly increasing attacks by cybercriminals and other coercive global tensions.