Sophos announces acquisition of Capsule8

Sophos today announced that it has acquired Capsule8, a pioneer and market leader of runtime visibility, detection and response for Linux production servers and containers covering on-premise and cloud workloads. Founded in 2016, Capsule8 is privately held and headquartered in New York, NY.

Dan Schiappa, chief product officer, Sophos

“Sophos already protects more than two million servers for over 85,000 customers worldwide, and the Sophos server security business is growing at more than 20% per year,” said Dan Schiappa, chief product officer, Sophos. “Comprehensive server protection is a crucial component of any effective cybersecurity strategy that organizations of all sizes are increasingly focused on, especially as more workloads move to the cloud. With Capsule8, Sophos is delivering advanced, differentiated solutions to protect server environments, and expanding its position as a leading global cybersecurity provider.”

Capsule8 is dedicated solely to the development of Linux security and has established itself as a technology and thought leader in the market, with marquis customer wins and billings growth of 77% in the year to March 31, 2021. Driven by the dramatic growth in cloud platforms, Linux has become the dominant operating system for server workloads. Capsule8’s high-performance, low-impact design is ideal for Linux servers, especially those used for high-scale workloads, production infrastructure and storing critical business data.

Sophos is integrating Capsule8 technology into its recently launched Adaptive Cybersecurity Ecosystem (ACE), providing powerful and lightweight Linux server and cloud container security within this open platform. Sophos will also feature Capsule8 technology in its Extended Detection and Response (XDR) solutions, Intercept X server protection products, and Sophos Managed Threat Response (MTR) and Rapid Response services. This will further expand and enhance Sophos’ data lake and deliver continuous, fresh intelligence for advanced threat hunting, security operations and customer protection practices.

Sophos expects to begin early access programs with its products and services leveraging the Capsule8 technology later this fiscal year.