Symantec splashes the cash on Clearwell

Security giant stumps up $390m for e-discovery vendor

Security giant Symantec has rejoined the acquisition trail by agreeing to buy e-discovery specialist Clearwell Systems for $390m (£240m).

The deal is expected to close in September, and will result in Clearwell becoming part of Symantec's information management group.

The deal dwarfs Symantec's last major acquisition, which saw the firm scoop up two data encryption vendors, PGP and GuardianEdge, last year for $370m.

Deepak Mohan, senior vice president of the information management group at Symantec, said: "The acquisition will further increase Symantec's ability to get the right information to the right people at the right time, while reducing the overall legal review costs and limiting risk."

Aaref Hilaly, chief executive of Clearwell, said: "By joining forces, we will be uniquely positioned to deliver a seamless integrated information governance workflow, benefitting both Symantec and Clearwell customers."