RSA Sells Identity Verification Service to Focus on ‘Intelligence-driven Security’

RSA Sells Knowledge Based Authentication Technology to LexisNexis in Order to Focus on ‘Intelligence-driven Security’ Leveraging Big Data and Real-Time Analytics

RSA has sold its consumer Knowledge Based Authentication (KBA) technology, which utilizes knowledge-based authentication to validate user identities in real-time through a series of generated questions within databases containing billions of public and commercially available records, to LexisNexis.

LexisNexis, which has been a data services provider for the RSA Identity Verification service through supplying identity-specific data to perform identity proofing and verification, will use the newly acquired technology to enhance its identity proofing solutions and strengthen its position in the identity management and fraud sector.

Why did RSA dump this piece of its portfolio off to its long-term partner? According to RSA, it was an opportunity to evolve the relationship so that each company could focus more on core competencies.

For RSA, those focus areas are intelligence-driven security, leveraging big data and real-time data analytics.

Organizations will shift to using big data analytics within the next few years to intelligently assess threats and risks and make better security decisions, RSA said in a security brief released in January. 

RSA executive chairman Art Coviello also pushed intelligence-based security as he addressed attendees at the RSA Conference this year, noting that businesses need to move to intelligence-based security systems that will detect and respond to attacks in a much more rapid manner.

“The consumer KBA acquisition will allow LexisNexis to further extend its leadership position in the identity management and fraud sector,” LexisNexis said in an announcement.

In addition to being a key data services provider for the RSA Identity Verification service, LexisNexis was also a reseller of the service into a number of accounts.

“The success of these combined efforts is why we both believe this new direction is a good path for the relationship and for our customers,” RSA’s Sean Brady noted in a blog post. “We believe this move will provide better alignment with each organization’s strategic direction.”

“Through LexisNexis, Identity Verification customers will have the benefit of having a closer association with the underlying data that powers the identity verification and authentication offering,” Brady added.

Most of the changes for customers will be transparent for the time being, RSA said, but over time customers will see new account team assignments and with changes to the domain and branding of the service. 

The terms of the sale were not disclosed.