Imperva To Buy Distil Networks To Bolster Bot Management

Combining Imperva's application security stack with Distil's technology will provide better defense against the most critical automated attack vectors such as ATO and scraping.

Imperva has agreed to purchase bot management vendor Distil Networks to better protect business-critical data and applications no matter where and how they're deployed.

The Redwood Shores, Calif.-based application and data protection vendor said its planned acquisition of San Francisco-based Distil Networks will provide customers with the necessary elements for protecting their applications and APIs. Combining Imperva's application security stack with Distil's technology will provide better defense against the most critical automated attack vectors such as ATO and scraping.

"Distil Networks gives us a comprehensive bot management solution that identifies, responds to and manages a full range of automated attacks no matter where these applications or APIs are deployed," Imperva CEO Chris Hylen said in a statement.

[Related: Imperva Plans To Buy Prevoty For $140M To Boost DevOps Capabilities]

Distil Networks was founded in 2011 and currently employs 110 people, down 16 percent down 131 employees last year and 41 percent from 187 workers two years ago, according to LinkedIn. The company has raised $59 million in 11 rounds of outside funding, according to Crunchbase, with its most recent $21 million series C round coming in August 2016.

Company CEO Tiffany Olson Kleeman said bots are an evolving attack vector that's become a threat to all organizations regardless of their size or location. Kleeman said Distil has been focused on finding ways to better understand, detect and mitigate automated attacks.

"We are excited to enter into a new chapter with a company that shares our passion for protecting critical business applications and delivering best-in-class security solutions for all customers," Kleeman said in a statement.

Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, and Imperva executives weren't immediately available for additional comment on the transaction. Imperva agreed in October 2018 to be purchased by private equity behemoth Thoma Bravo for $2.1 billion after seven years as a publicly-traded company.

Imperva said it provides an application security tool that protects companies' most valuable assets and delivers security insights that businesses can act on. Distil, meanwhile, was praised in a 2018 Forrester bot management report for its strength around detection, response, user interface and reporting.

The Distil Networks deal comes less than 11 months after Imperva's $140 million purchase of Prevoty to enable customers using agile development to natively build security into their applications, extending the company's reach into the DevOps market. All told, Imperva has made five acquisitions since being founded 17 years ago, according to CrunchBase.

Distil Networks, meanwhile, launched its first partner program in November 2015 featuring both a commission-based track for agents as well as a reseller model for partners who want to bill end users themselves. Both tracks provided partners with deal registration, post-sale integration, service delivery teams, service level agreements, and dedicated sales engineers and channel sales professionals.

Rackspace has seen an increasing number of customers interested in bot protection and management since it's a growing vector of attacks that are relatively cheap and effective for attackers, according to Rob Jackson, senior manager of the Windcrest, Texas-based Imperva partner.

"It's a gap that's relatively in vogue recently," Jackson said told CRN.

Jackson would encourage Imperva to fully integrate Distil Networks' support organization, ticketing and operations into the broader organization so that partners and customers can fully take advantage of the deal. He said the channel will benefit from being able to consolidate suppliers while still satisfying the majority of customers' needs around application security.