Absolute Security
Absolute Security is an American company that provides products and services in the fields of cyber resilience, endpoint security, Security Service Edge , and zero trust security. It was publicly traded company on the Toronto Stock Exchange and Nasdaq until it was acquired by Crosspoint Capital Partners in July 2023.
In 2024, the company changed its name to Absolute Security to better reflect the company’s role in cybersecurity and cyber resilience.
The company is headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Regional, global offices are in, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Austin, Texas; Tokyo, Japan; Reading, UK, and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
History
Founded in 1993 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Absolute Security developed a product to manage, track and secure computers regardless of the physical location of devices. In 2000, Absolute Security became a publicly traded company on the Toronto Stock Exchange.In 2005, Persistence technology by Absolute Security was embedded for the first time into the firmware or BIOS of a computer. This was the start of an ongoing partnership with most major original equipment manufacturers where Absolute Security technology ships with the hardware from the factory.
In 2007, Microsoft awarded Absolute Security gold certified partner status in the Microsoft Partner Ecosystem.
Absolute Security's office in Europe was first established in November 2006, in Newbury, UK. In July 2009, a second regional office was opened in Austin, Texas, to serve as a base for the company's U.S.-based sales team.
In December 2009, Absolute Security announced its acquisition of the LANrev product suite, a computer systems management software application, from Pole Position Software. Following the acquisition, the product suite was rebranded as Absolute Asset Management, and eventually renamed as Absolute Manage.
In November 2012, Absolute Security acquired the assets of LiveTime Software, a privately held helpdesk and IT Service Support Management provider. LiveTime assets were officially relaunched as part of Absolute Security's expanded product suite in January 2013 as Absolute Service, an IT Service Management tool. Absolute Service received PinkVERIFY ITIL 3 Certification from Pink Elephant.
In June 2013, Absolute Security acquired Palisade Systems, a privately-held provider of data loss prevention technologies. In October, the firm launched a student and device protection initiative called Absolute Safe Schools, which educates students and staff of participating schools on the safe use of mobile devices and provides assistance in the event of device loss and theft.
In December 2013, John Livingston stepped down as chief executive officer and as a member of the board of directors at Absolute Security. On June 13, 2014, Geoff Haydon was appointed CEO and director.
Absolute Security renamed Computrace to Data and Device Security and refocused its business model in 2015. The company sold its Absolute Manage and Absolute Service products to HEAT Software in October 2015.
On November 2, 2018, Christy Wyatt was appointed CEO and director. She was named “New CEO of the Year” by the Globe and Mail in 2020. Business and technology news organizations have interviewed Wyatt on cyber security topics including ransomware, the zero trust security model, and the trend toward remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In May 2023, Absolute Security announced it would be acquired by Crosspoint Capital Partners for $657 million. The acquisition was completed in July 2023, and the company delisted from both the TSX and NASDAQ exchanges.
In 2024, Absolute announced that the company would be changing its name to Absolute Security to more accurately represent the company’s 30-year presence providing cybersecurity and cyber resilience to global organizations.
In September 2024, Absolute Security announced the acquisition of Syxsense, an endpoint and vulnerability management provider based in Costa Mesa, CA.
Products and services
The Absolute Security software platform, formerly known as Data and Device Security, consists of several components organized into three product lines: Secure Endpoint, Secure Access, and Application Persistence-as-a-Service.The Secure Endpoint line enables users to monitor and address laptop problems. Its components include Absolute Visibility, Absolute Control, and Absolute Resilience. The company added Absolute Ransomware Response in April 2022.
The Secure Access line provides network connectivity for users to gain access to resources in the cloud, private data centers, or on-premises. These products allow users to transition to a zero trust approach. The line includes Absolute VPN, Absolute ZTNA, and Absolute Insights for Network.
In November 2021, Absolute Security launched the Application Persistence-as-a-Service product line.
A core component of all three lines is Absolute Persistence, which allows always-on connection to the endpoint. Furthermore, the products' "self-healing" client can reinstall itself if tampered with. Persistence technology is embedded in more than half a billion devices.
Partnerships
Absolute Security has partnerships with various worldwide, embedding its Persistence technology directly into device firmware during production. Notable OEM partners include Dell, Lenovo, Hewlett-Packard, and Samsung. Dell, an early customer of the company, later became a supplier. Kevin Peesker, President of Dell Canada, noted that Dell's scalable infrastructure has supported Absolute Security's global growth and operational efficiency from its Vancouver base.Absolute Security has partnerships with resellers, distributors, and regional partners, including companies such as CDW, PCM, Insight, and InTechnology.
In addition, Absolute Security collaborates with operating system providers, chipset manufacturers, and security companies to develop complementary technologies and services. Other alliance partners include Advanced Micro Devices, Qualcomm, Verizon, and Follett.