IBM acquires database monitoring company Guardium

IBM has announced its acquisition of Waltham, Massachusetts-based real-time enterprise database monitoring and protection company Guardium. Guardium's technology helps clients safeguard data, monitor database activity and reduce operational costs by automating regulatory compliance tasks.

In its statement, IBM said that the acquisition will help its clients maintain trusted information infrastructures by continuously monitoring access and activity to protect high-value databases against threats from legitimate users and potential hackers. It will also help clients streamline compliance processes for ever-changing industry and government mandates with centralized and automated controls for all major platforms.

IBM said that the combination of Guardium's technology with its own will help organizations safely realize the promise of business analytics and use trusted information to drive smarter business outcomes. Designed for cross-platform environments, Guardium's technology identifies patterns and anomalies in data access and usage allowing organizations to maintain the integrity of their data and turn it into a strategic business asset. Its monitoring capabilities also detect fraud and unauthorized access via enterprise applications such as an organization's ERP, CRM or Data Warehousing solutions. IBM cites the example of The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) operates the second largest rail transit system in the United States and transports over a third of the federal government to work. Washington Metro needed to safeguard sensitive customer data and simplify compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS), without impacting performance or changing database configurations. With over nine million credit and debit card transactions annually, Metro is classified as a top-tier Level 1 merchant by the PCI-DSS standard. Guardium's technology allowed Metro to gain granular visibility into all database transactions, enabling it to protect the privacy and integrity of their critical data and identify potential fraud in their ERP/HR system.

"Guardium gives clients unprecedented visibility and control over their data access activities while taking advantage of automation to deliver rapid return on investment," said Ram Metser, chief executive officer, Guardium. "The combination of IBM and Guardium provides clients with a comprehensive solution for safeguarding critical enterprise information and preventing fraud without the complexity of traditional approaches."

IBM said the acquisition would extend its business analytics strategy, including the range of offerings available through its recently-announced Business Analytics and Optimization Consulting organization with 4,000 consultants, a network of analytics solution centers, and an overall investment of more than $12 billion in organic growth and acquisitions. IBM plans to integrate Guardium within its Information Management Software portfolio that has over 35,000 experts dedicated to helping clients use information as a strategic asset to transform their business.