Enterprise security vendor Blue Coat Systems has bought cloud security specialist Perspecsys to beef up its hybrid cloud portfolio. Blue Coat claims the extra infrastructure makes it the top cloud access security broker (CASB). 

Perspecsys’ Cloud Data Protection system uses cloud data tokenization and encryption to lessen the risks associated with data compliance, privacy and security. The system aims to give users complete control of their data, regardless of location, when it’s in use or resting in the cloud. Perspecsys claims its invention has lessened the risk of using salesforce.com, ServiceNow and Oracle by making the public cloud private.

The PCI Council has updated its Data Security Standard
PCI standards may now be easier to achieve – Thinkstock / Marie Fields

 Data compliance fears can now be put aside

CASBs are now the best layer of protection to add software as a service (SaaS) applications, according to Bluecoat president Mike Fey. “Industry analysts predict substantial growth for this space in the next five years. As SaaS deployments continue to increase, this technology will become an essential component of enterprise data and cloud security,” said Fey. 

According to Fey, fears about meeting data compliance standards – such as those governing personally identifiable information (PII), payment card information (PCI) and protected health information (HIPAA) – are putting a block on system development. The strict data governance and regional residency rules for multinational companies have inhibited the adoption of cloud applications in many organizations.

By solving these problems, Blue Coat could boost progress in the cloud and data centre industries, according to CEO Greg Clark.

“Customers tell us that the proxy is the logical location to implement CASB features,” said Clark, “Perspecsys has delivered an approach for encrypting and tokenizing data in the cloud that can actually be used in the real world by global customers. It cuts the risk of corporate cyber-crime.”