Google buys Web condom company

[<rms () computerbytesman com>]

Via Slashdot:

 

Google buys anti-malware browser virtualization startup

 

http://blogs.zdnet.com/security/?p=241

Google has quietly made its first anti-malware acquisition, snapping up
GreenBorder Technologies
<javascript:sClk(%22http%3A//www.greenborder.com/index.html%22)> , a
venture-backed company that sells browser virtualization security software.

GoogleThe acquisition
<https://supportcenteronline.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=4049>  gives
the search engine a key piece of technology to block Web-based exploits that
prey on flaws in the two most widely used browsers - Microsoft's Internet
Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox.

(Also see: Google
<javascript:sClk(%22http%3A//blogs.zdnet.com/security/%3Fp%3D229%22)> 's
anti-malware team comes out the shadows)

GreenBorder's software creates an "impenetrable protective barrier" that
keeps all interactions with a Web site and its associated content and
programs away from the internal parts of a Windows machine.

It essentially creates a DMZ (demilitarized zone) between the Windows
desktop and programs downloaded from Web pages or opened from e-mail
messages in Microsoft Outlook.

The company sold two versions of the sandbox software - consumers and
enterprise - before the Google acquisition. New sales/downloads have been
discontinued but existing customers will continue to get support.

It's clear that Google is pushing aggressively into the anti-malware market
to clean up its own search results and provide protection to end users and
this deal signals the company's intent to use the browser as the entry point
to get on desktops.

It's likely that Google will rebrand and release GreenBorder's software as a
free download or as an addition to the Google Toolbar.

Last week, when I blogged about Google's anti-malware team launching a blog
and dropping hints about future plans, I suggested that a big acquisition
might be on the cards. This wasn't it.

It certainly looks like Google has set its sights on the desktop anti-virus
space and, as others
<javascript:sClk(%22http%3A//www.stillsecureafteralltheseyears.com/ashimmy/2
007/05/forget_about_sy.html%22)>  are speculating, Symantec and McAfee could
soon be nervously looking over their shoulders.

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