Sonatype adds more open source intelligence with acquisition

Fulton-based Sonatype is bringing on some deeper knowledge about potential security vulnerabilties with an acquisition.
The company that makes tools to automate software processes and potential holes in open source code acquired Vor Security, which is based in Ottowa, Canada. Terms were not disclosed.
Vor Security founder Ken Duck created the OSS Index, which is an index of open source software vulnerabilities. The startup complied details on 120,000 security vulnerabilities. Access is initially free, and the company also offers premium licensing and support.
Sonatype will integrate the OSS Index into its platform, called Nexus Lifecycle. The platform had intelligence on security risks in Java, JavaScript, NuGet, and PyPl. The deal adds intelligence on frameworks that weren’t previously covered by Sonatype. Along with the acquisition, Sonatype said it is debuting a new service called Nexus Lifecycle XC, which offers intelligence on frameworks such as Ruby, PHP, Swift, CocoaPods, Golang, C, and C++.

EXCITING DAY AT WORK >> @sonatype Acquires Vor Security – Announces Nexus Lifecycle XC https://t.co/lUnFYDx4Z9 pic.twitter.com/O1b4YPU2j3

— weekstweets (@weekstweets) June 29, 2017

The two companies are also complementary in their approach.
“Vor approached the vulnerability correction and assignment from the project to the components, which is exactly opposite of the Sonatype approach of finding the vulnerable code and tracking it back to the released component,” Sonatype’s Brian Fox wrote in a blog post about the deal. “By merging the top down and bottom up approaches, we can significantly increase our vulnerability coverage.”
Sonatype was founded in 2010 by Wayne Jackson, who was previously CEO of Sourcefire. The company raised $30 million last year, and has a host of corporate clients.
Duck, the Vor founder, will join Sonatype in the deal.