
CrossIdeas is an Italian firm that is known for providing tools that help corporations identify who is using what and when they are using it on both cloud and on-site systems. IBM announced yesterday that they would be bringing CrossIdeas into the fold in order to bolster their current cloud security offerings.
It’s no secret that cloud security is at the top of the list when consumers, organizations and cloud solution providers are polled. IBM is cognizant of this fact and it only made sense for Big Blue to snatch up CrossIdeas in order to bundle the platform alongside services such as SoftLayer. IBM already had an established working relationship with CrossIdeas prior to the deal. ZDNet writes that CrossIdeas has helped IBM and its customers “reduce the risk of fraud, conflicts of duties, and human error in business processes.”
CrossIdeas is a relatively new company. The CrossIdeas organization was founded in 2011. Analysts note that this is the first security related buyout IBM has participated in since it spent $1B on Trusteer. The purchase price of CrossIdeas has not been released as of yet.
Brendon Hannigan of IBM Security Systems mentioned, “The addition of CrossIdeas extends IBM’s market share leading portfolio of identity and access management capabilities. IBM can now provide enterprises with enhanced governance capabilities and transparency into risk from the factory floor to the board room, giving leaders the insight they need to protect their brand and customers.”
CrossIdeas will be most beneficial in granting and limiting access in situations where large amounts of money are in play. IBM noted an example of a financial services brokerage firm using CrossIdeas to prevent rouge stock brokers from making overtly risky trades that violate corporate compliance policies. Having IBM CrossIdeas within your systems can help ease the pain of getting an audit while having the peace of mind knowing that your systems are setup in a way that they do not violate compliance regulations.