Cloudflare has announced its intention to purchase Area 1 Security, a security startup that has developed a product that prevents phishing attacks from reaching an employee’s inbox. Cloudflare intends to spend $162 million on the purchase. The acquisition will be funded with both cash and stock. Cloudflare has developed its own suite of security products with a zero-trust security model. Even if employees aren’t in the office or aren’t using a corporate VPN, these security solutions prevent data loss, malware, and phishing attacks.
With today’s acquisition, the company is adding a mature email security product to its zero-trust offering. Area 1 Security said that it blocked over 40 million phishing campaigns for its customers in 2021 alone. “Because email is the most common cyber-attack vector on the Internet, integrated email security is essential for any true Zero Trust network.” That’s why, today, we’re welcoming Area 1 Security to help Cloudflare’s platform become the clear leader in Zero Trust,” said Matthew Prince, co-founder, and CEO of Cloudflare.
“In our opinion, the future of Zero Trust includes an integrated, one-click approach to securing all of an organization’s applications, including email, which is the most widely used cloud application.” We expect to deliver the fastest, most effective, and most reliable email security on the market as a result of our collaboration.”
This isn’t Cloudflare’s first foray into email marketing. Last year, the company released its first email products. For instance, you can associate a domain name with your Cloudflare account and create custom email addresses from Cloudflare’s interface. Incoming emails can be routed to any other email inbox. Cloudflare also guides you to improve your DNS records and make your emails more secure. For example, the firm can assist you in avoiding spoofing attacks.
Furthermore, Area 1 Security fills a critical hole in Cloudflare’s email offering. Area 1 Security is constantly on the lookout for new phishing attacks. Area 1 Security scans inbound emails for phishing attempts when employees receive new emails. Suspicious emails are blocked automatically before they reach inboxes. They don’t just appear in the “Spam” folder, they’re blocked altogether.
Behind the scenes, customers can start using Area 1 Security by altering the MX record at the DNS level. After that, it’s a cloud-first product, which means customers won’t have to worry about installing or patching software. If your firm is utilizing Google Workspace or Office 365, Area 1 Security works with those email providers. Given Cloudflare’s deep expertise in DNS servers, this acquisition makes sense. Cloudflare has been using Area 1 Security for its employees’ inboxes for a while now. To put it another way, they already know what they’re getting.
