HP ventures into vulnerability assessment

HP has acquired www.vnunet.com, a provider of security assessment tools for developers.

HP plans to offer the software as part of the application life cycle management tools in the Mercury Interactive portfolio. Following the www.vnunet.com, Mercury Interactive has been rebranded HP Software.

Spi Dynamics' tools scan online applications for security vulnerabilities. The company targets security professionals as well as quality assurance engineers and developers.

There is an urgent need for such tools. Firms are increasingly putting applications on the web where previously they operated within the safety of the corporate firewall.

Especially so-called cross-side-scripting and SQL injection attacks have become a common risk. Spi Dynamics has previously claimed that it has a 99 per cent success rate in breaching the security of its clients' online applications.

Spi Dynamics' tools work together with Microsoft's Visual Studio .Net as well as tools from other software vendors. More than 60 per cent of its customer base however uses the application in combination with Mercury tools, Brian Cohen, chief executive officer for Spi Dynamics said in a conference call.

Spi Dynamics won't adjust its partner programme, but the two companies acknowledged that the acquisition will prompt some partners to end their relationships with the firm.

Financial terms of the deal weren't disclosed. Spi Dynamics is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and has more than 1,000 customers.

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