IMB Logo. Photo: IBM.

JNS.org – Technology giant IBM announced Thursday that it plans to acquire Israeli security software vendor Trusteer for an undisclosed amount, believed to be between $800 million and $1 billion.

With offices in Boston and Tel Aviv, Trusteer helps firms protect Web applications, employee and customer computers, and mobile devices from cyber threats. Among Trusteer’s more prominent clients are financial services firms such as Bank of America, HSBC, PayPal and RBS. Trusteer is considered one of the fastest-growing cybersecurity companies in Israel, with an annual income of $100 million.

As part of its acquisition announcement, IBM said that it would set up a cybersecurity software lab in Israel that will bring together more than 200 Trusteer and IBM researchers and developers.

“Trusteer’s expertise and superior technology in enterprise endpoint defense and advanced malware prevention will help our clients across all industries address the constantly evolving threats they are facing,” Brendan Hannigan, general manager of the security systems division at IBM, said in a statement.