VASCO Acquires DigiNotar in Authentication Play

VASCO Data Security International has bought certification authority DigiNotar.

Vasco Data Security International announced today it has acquired Internet trust services specialist DigiNotar.

The deal was completed for $12.9 million (USD), and is part of Vasco's plans to expand the company's offerings. Founded in 1998, DigiNotar is an official Dutch CA (certification authority) capable of issuing, validating and registering certificates of Dutch nationals and entities that are recognized throughout the European Union and used to authenticate government applications. For that reason, the buyout gives Vasco a presence in the Dutch e-government market.

"DigiNotar is a valuable addition to Vasco's PKI (public key infrastructure) and digital signature offerings, such as DIGIPASS CertiID and DIGIPASS Key," Jan Valcke, Vasco's president and chief operating officer, said in a statement. "We acquired DigiNotar because of its complementary product suite, its highly professional set of employees and its market. With DigiNotar, we are strengthening our services offering and broadening our market reach towards e-government and PKI-based authentication markets. We believe that the DigiNotar acquisition will be instrumental to Vasco's future growth and success."

DigiNotar provides managed PKI identities for third-party professional services applications and offers its own PKI-secured applications. Focused mainly in the Netherlands, DigiNotar's offerings can be sold throughout the European Union, Vasco officials said. The companies already have ties through DigiNotar's EazyID concept, an initiative to set up a national consumer-authentication platform in the Netherlands. EazyID makes use of Vasco's DIGIPASS/VACMAN authentication technology.

"Our DIGIPASS as a Service strategy includes the development of a gateway server, allowing us to host our clients' authentication needs on our own systems," said Ken Hunt, Vasco's chairman and CEO. "DigiNotar brings us practical experience in operating a services platform and strengthens our overall services product offering. This acquisition is an example of our determination to make DIGIPASS-as-a-Service a success."