Microsoft Buys CyberX To Further Its IoT Ambitions

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is getting further into the Internet of Things (IoT), announcing the acquisition of IoT security company CyberX.

In a blog post Monday, the tech stock said the acquisition of the IoT security start-up will help protect all of the devices being connected to the internet.

"While the benefits of IoT are well established and significant, one of the biggest hurdles for customers is securing IoT devices," Microsoft executives Michal Braverman-Blumenstyk and Sam George wrote in the post. "Two years ago, Microsoft announced a $5 billion investment in IoT to further our commitment to build a trusted, easy-to-use platform for our customers and partners to build connected solutions."

Terms of the deal were not disclosed but in May, Globes, the Israeli online publication, pegged the deal at $165 million. CyberX was founded in 2013 by Omer Schneider and Nir Giller of Israel and is based in Boston. The cybersecurity company has a development center in Herzliya, Israel.

Once the deal is completed, CyberX will be implemented as part of the tech stock's Azure IoT security offering, and will be used with existing devices enabling customers to improve the security of products already on the market. Through the company's technology, users will be able to view digital maps of thousands of devices connected across a factory floor or within a building. They will also be able to gather information about the devices and spot any vulnerabilities.

"Gaining this visibility is not only critical for understanding where security risks may exist and then mitigating those risks, but it is also a fundamental step to securely enable smart manufacturing, smart grid, and other digitization use cases across production facilities and the supply chain," the Microsoft executives wrote in the blog.

This article originally appeared in the Motley Fool.

Donna Fuscaldo has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Microsoft and recommends the following options: long January 2021 $85 calls on Microsoft and short January 2021 $115 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.