McAfee in $350m deal for SafeBoot

McAfee on Monday announced a deal to acquire SafeBoot, a Dutch maker of encryption software.

The deal, for $350m in cash, comes as internet security companies are scrambling to offer products that protect the personal data stored on a growing array of mobile devices.

The trend is being driven by the need for companies to comply with a bevy of new privacy laws in the US and Europe.

Many of these laws require companies to take specific steps to protect sensitive customer information.

While companies have long sought to protect data held on their computer systems, the profusion of laptops, smart phones and other mobile devices among office workers has resulted in many new security threats.

The market for data protection was worth $214m (£110m) last year, and could grow to as much as $958m by 2011, according to IDC, the market research group.

The SafeBoot deal would add to a growing stable of data security technologies at McAfee, which is best known for its anti-virus and anti-spam software.