Qualys acquires Blue Hexagon’s AI/Machine Learning platform

Cloud-based IT, security and compliance company Qualys has announced it has acquired the assets of Blue Hexagon, which the company says will bring the power of AI and Machine Learning (AI/ML) to its cloud platform.

In a statement, the company said the acquisition would enable Qualys to uncover behaviour patterns including active vulnerability exploitation, identification of advanced network threats, and adaptive risk mitigation across all assets and applications. 

According to Qualys, this dynamic combination of highly integrated security data with machine learning technology will bring predictive and automated reduction of cyber security risk to Qualys customers.

Acquisition augments Qualys security data lake with deep learning

An AI/ML innovator of Cloud Threat Detection and Response solutions, Blue Hexagon allows enterprises to adopt the public cloud securely through real-time detection of several types of cloud attacks, from supply chain infection in containers and storage, to crypto miners and APTs with command and control, to unauthorised activity from malicious actors.

“The team and I are delighted to join such an innovative, industry-leading cloud security company,” said Nayeem Islam, CEO and co-founder of Blue Hexagon. “Our deep learning-based Network Detection and Response products augment Qualys’ massive security data lake with network data and deep learning, enabling enhanced security risk assessment and detection.”

The Blue Hexagon AI/ML technology will be integrated throughout the Qualys Cloud Platform allowing customers to detect active vulnerability exploitations. The company said Blue Hexagon’s AI/ML-based threat detection capability will augment vulnerability assessment by detecting active exploitations based on behaviour patterns and suspicious activities over the network.

Augmenting detection and response to detect early signs of ransomware and malware attacks

The acquisition will also allow customers to implement adaptive risk mitigation to reduce the risk of open vulnerabilities and threats including exposure of business-critical assets with adaptive mitigations, and to augment detection and response with the context of network threats. In a statement Qualys said Blue Hexagon’s AI/ML-driven network detection will allow it to collect, inspect and analyse network telemetry, protocols and traffic in an agentless manner, including encrypted traffic, for early signs of ransomware and malware attacks.

“It is a pleasure to welcome the brightest minds in AI/ML and cybersecurity to the Qualys team,” said Sumedh Thakar, president and CEO of Qualys. “Qualys’ mission is helping organisations identify and reduce cyber risks, and the blue hexagon platform will enable us to provide powerful context-aware insights that will enhance our customers’ cyber resilience.”