EMC shoots down Archer

EMC has inked its first deal of 2010

Software giant EMC has begun 2010 in acquisition mode, grabbing governance and risk compliance software vendor Archer Technologies for an undisclosed sum.

Archer will operate as part of EMC’s RSA security arm, although the privately held firm will remain in Kansas after the acquisition's expected closure in the first quarter.

Its solutions, which include policy, risk, compliance, enterprise, incident, vendor threat, business continuity and audit management, are used by 25 of the Fortune 100 companies.

EMC’s acquisition spree has slowed since 2006, when it bought 12 firms including RSA Security. It made four deals in both 2008 and 2009.

Art Coviello, president of RSA, the security division of EMC, claimed Archer’s technology mirrors where the security management market is heading.

“Traditional security management focuses primarily on addressing technology issues, but our customers are telling us that their real challenges are in the areas of policy management, audit and compliance,” he said.

“You can’t manage what you can’t see. The Archer solution not only offers the visibility into risk and compliance that customers need, it brings stronger policy management capabilities to the RSA portfolio.”

Jon Darbyshire, chief executive of Archer, said: “Putting the resources of EMC and its RSA security division behind us will bring tremendous leverage to our technology development, customer support, partner ecosystem and go-to-market capabilities.”