Sophos has announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Astaro, a privately held provider of network security solutions, headquartered in Wilmington, Massachusetts, USA and Karlsruhe, Germany.

Businesses today face unprecedented challenges in protecting users and IT infrastructure from escalating complex security threats, especially those brought on by more mobile, roaming users, new application protocols, and distributed networks. There is a widening security gap for companies given the new rules by which users, businesses and IT operate and this acquisition answers unmet customer needs for better security coordination and effectiveness between users, applications and IT infrastructure.

The market for multi-function security appliances has continued to grow because organizations of all sizes want better protection against security threats and need to support their users and distributed workplaces in a comprehensive, easy to use, efficient way. According to IDC, the market for unified threat management was approximately $2 billion worldwide in 2010, with a CAGR of 13% 2010-2014.

Astaro, with $56 million in billings and 30% year over year growth in 2010, is the fourth largest dedicated unified threat management (UTM) provider, leads the market and has sustained fast growth due to its strong track record of innovation and robust portfolio of feature rich network security solutions. With over 56,000 installations in over 60 countries, Astaro protects business and government networks across the globe against IT security threats. The company currently has more than 220 employees in nine countries spanning three continents, including a significant presence in the EMEA region.