Finjan sues Secure Computing, accusing patent infringement

San Jose, Calif.,-based Finjan said in a statement Monday that it seeks an injunction against Secure Computing and its subsidiaries, CyberGuard and Webwasher, "from continued sales of the Webwasher Secure Content Management software suite, and for damages for their willful infringement of Finjan's intellectual property."

The patent in question, which Finjan applied for on Nov. 8, 1996, concerns systems used to protect a network from hostile downloads and malicious code, the statement said. The company did not say what damages they are seeking.

Representatives from Secure Computing, a nearly 20-year-old San Jose vendor, declined to comment on the lawsuit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Delaware.

"We have no comment," spokesperson Nikolett Bacso said today. "We are currently reviewing the claims alleged in the complaint and intend to vigorously defend any claims made against us."

Secure Computing completed its acquisition of CyberGuard in January for $295 million. Webwasher, a content security suite, was a CyberGuard product line and is now sold by Secure Computing.

Finjan is partially owned by Microsoft, which purchased a non-exclusive worldwide license for some Finjan patents last year.