BlackBerry completes WatchDox acquisition

BlackBerry’s recent WatchDox acquisition is already a wrap. BlackBerry announced in April that it was acquiring the Israel-based data security company, which offers cross-platform, secure file-sync-and-share services. Although terms of the WatchDox acquisition were not revealed, sources say the deal was around US $100 million.

Because WatchDox’s main product works on any device or platform, it will be another key notch in BlackBerry’s expanding belt of cross-platform services. WatchDox secures shared files on both mobile and desktop devices, and allows an approved user or administrator to revoke access to or delete files remotely. It also prevents access to files that could be compromised in a network breach.

WatchDox uses 256-bit encryption for both data-at-rest and data-in-transit, and the company says it complies with the US government’s Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 140-2. WatchDox counts among its customers over 150 of the Fortune 1000 companies, including the largest civilian US federal agencies, six of the top 12 private equity firms, and “most” of the six major Hollywood studios. The company also has an office in Silicon Valley.

WatchDox acquisition benefits BES users

BlackBerry will sell WatchDox as a standalone product and integrate it as a service in BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES). The latest BES version–BES12– includes cross-platform mobile device management of Android, iOS, BlackBerry, and Windows Mobile phones and tablets. BlackBerry. WatchDox will be included in BES12’s Secure Work Space for iOS and Android, for access to enterprise files behind the firewall.

Another WatchDox feature that will benefit BES users is the ability to let users control the level of security and permissions that travel with files through file wrapping, including setting limitations on viewing, sharing, saving and printing. Administrators can also watermark content across all devices to prevent unwanted sharing; and identify the source of the file through screenshots, photograph or other validation means.

After the WatchDox acquisition, BlackBerry will keep–and likely expand–WatchDox’s current headquarters in Israel. In doing so, BlackBerry joins over 300 other major technology companies with research and development centers in that country, which include Apple, Google, Microsoft, Samsung, and Intel.