CyberArk acquires user access management provider Zilla for $175M – News

CyberArk Software Ltd. has acquired Zilla Security Inc., a startup that helps enterprises manage employee access to internal applications.

The companies announced the deal today. CyberArk, a publicly traded provider of cybersecurity software, will pay $165 million in cash and an additional $10 million if certain performance goals are met. Zilla previously raised about $17 million in funding from investors. 

Complying with cybersecurity regulations such as HIPAA often requires companies to carry out user access reviews. Those are assessments designed to uncover employee accounts that have access to more data than they should. A bank, for example, may wish to ensure that a sensitive transaction database isn’t accessible to staffers who don’t require it for their work. 

Zilla provides a platform that promises to streamline user access reviews. Companies can use it to provide the experts who carry out a review with information on which employee account has access to what system. Additionally, Zilla saves data about reviewers’ work in a log, which eases the task of finding mistakes. 

A second set of features in the company’s platform eases the task of assigning access permissions to employees. Zilla automatically gives new hires access to the applications they require for their work. According to the company, its software can also remove permissions when a staffer leaves or switches roles.

Zilla says the platform makes it easier for enterprises to implement separation of duties. This is a cybersecurity best practice that reduces the risk of breaches by limiting what users can do in an application.

For example, an employee with the ability to edit entries in a sensitive database can’t be given access to the logs that record database edits. Zilla analyzes the user accounts in a company’s network to check whether separation of duties is implemented effectively.

Besides managing account access permissions, the platform also spots when hackers try to exploit them. Zilla says its algorithms detect malicious activity such as attempts to create unauthorized administrator accounts. The software also finds vulnerabilities that could lead to breaches in the future, such as an unused employee account with access to sensitive systems.

CyberArk will use Zilla’s technology to enhance its product portfolio, which mainly comprises software tools that help workers securely access business applications. Its tools are used for tasks such as processing employee login requests and storing passwords. Additionally, it sells an enterprise-focused browser that protects employees from threats such as malicious extensions.

The company will make Zilla’s core features available in the form of two standalone products called Zilla Comply and Zilla Provisioning. The former offering eases tasks such as carrying out user access reviews for regulatory compliance purposes. Zilla Provisioning, in turn, makes it possible to centrally manage employee accounts’ access permissions. 

The acquisition comes less than a year after CyberArk’s previous startup purchase. Last May, it inked a $1.54 billion deal to buy Venafi Inc., which provides cybersecurity tools that ease tasks such as protecting developers’ code from tempering. 

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