In an unexpected industry twist, consulting giant Accenture (NYSE: ACN) on Tuesday announced that it has agreed to acquire Symantec’s Cyber Security Services business from Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) for an undisclosed sum.
The news comes as a surprise, as Broadcom completed its $10.7 billion acquisition of Symantec’s enterprise security business just two months ago. (Symantec’s Cyber Security Services business unit was part of Symantec’s overall enterprise security business)
The acquisition significantly expands Accenture Security’s managed security services offerings and capabilities, and will add more than 300 employees around the world to the group.
Symantec’s Cyber Security Services business includes threat monitoring and analysis through a network of security operation centers around the world, real-time adversary and industry-specific threat intelligence and incident response services. The six security operations centers are located in the U.S., the United Kingdom, India, Australia, Singapore and Japan.
In late 2019, Accenture announced the launch of three cyber ranges designed to help industrial companies practice their cyberattack response plan.
“This acquisition is a game-changer and will help Accenture provide flexibility rather than a ‘one size fits all’ approach to managed security services,” Kelly Bissell, senior managing director of Accenture Security, said in a statement.
Symantec’s Cyber Security Services business is the latest in several security-related acquisitions by the consulting giant over the years— including those of Deja vu Security, iDefense, Maglan, Redcore, Arismore and FusionX.
The transaction is expected to close in March 2020.
After selling off its enterprise security business to Broadcom, Symantec Corp changed its name to NortonLifeLock Inc., which is based in Tempe, Arizona, and trades under the NLOK symbol on Nasdaq.