Mergers and Acquisitions

Solution Overview

SYNACK – EVALUATE M&A BEFORE CYBER CRIMINALS DO

Merger & Acquisition activity, and the inevitable publicity around it, attracts financial criminals, nation state attackers, and even competitors. When two organizations join forces, so do their respective application infrastructures, unintentionally creating potential digital weakness. Adversaries target the weakest link, and as the merging entities’ risk exposure increases, cyber criminals move in to exploit the path of least resistance.

When seemingly secure applications are developed outside the control and criteria imposed by an organization’s high standards, new vulnerabilities can be introduced during the integration process. Adversaries use this new attack surface information to exploit vulnerabilities and subsequently establish beachheads within either organization.

This is a formidable security challenge that needs to be addressed. Even the slightest disruption of business from a security threat can lead to loss of data, loss of revenue, and above all, loss of customer confidence. Any exfiltration of sensitive information can result in huge outlays—both in terms of liabilities and remediation efforts.

The Synack platform leverages the optimal combination of humans and technology to create an offensive “Security-as-a-

Service” offering that provides an adversarial approach to vulnerability intelligence. The Synack M&A Solution combines

the Synack Red Team (SRT), an elite, trusted and highly vetted group of security researchers, with Hydra Technology,

a proprietary platform built specifically to drive crowd efficiency. This combination of man & machine enables clear,

comprehensive, and timely assessments of mobile and on-premise applications and infrastructure during every stage

of the M&A process. Synack’s dedicated Mission Ops team provides curated security intelligence and prioritized risk

assessments, enabling security teams to fully understand the robustness of the acquirer’s digital assets.

As the deal progresses, the Synack intelligence can be leveraged to provide remediation guidance and, by triggering on-

demand patch verification directly from the SRT, make the whole process effective at avoiding downtime.

Client AssetsSynack Secure PlatformHydra Technology

Synack Red Team

Report

10/10 CVSS

Mission Ops

YOU

By breaching the acquired company or its subsidiaries, adversaries can then gain access to the merged entity’s sensitive information and infrastructure.

Integration MergerMerger & Acquisition Scenarios

ACQUIRER

ACQUIRER

Pre-Acquisition

Business

Critical

Systems

ACQU IREE

Go

No Go

MergerIntegration

ACQUIRER

SIN

GL

E C

OM

PA

NY

ACQUIREE

Discover > Prioritize > Remediate 1. Discover 2. Prioritize 3. Remediate 4. Educate & Adapt

v2016.1: INT—US.

Synack Continuous SubscriptionSynack Pre-Acquisition Sprint

Wit

h S

ynack

EVALUATE YOUR M&A BEFORE CYBER CRIMINALS DO

The Synack platform allows the enterprise to initiate a targeted M&A program, and presents a controlled and continuous adversarial view of the application and infrastructure security.

SUMMARY

Information Security needs to be an integral part of the M&A process. In order to address the security challenges of the merged business, the security strategy needs to encompass people, processes, and technology. Astute handling of the M&A process can minimize the threat surface of the combined entities, so it is key that information security is a high priority from the planning stage of the M&A activity through the entire lifecycle. Synack’s revolutionary model gives you access to a private, trusted crowd of security researchers who perform expert risk analysis during the entire M&A lifecycle, helping your organization make the right decisions.

Synack works with enterprise companies to discover, illustrate and minimize their attack surface through the life cycle of the M&A: pre-acquisition, integration, and merging. With Synack, enterprise companies can manage risk by getting an adversarial view of their security posture at every stage of the M&A lifecycle.

Step 1: Pre-Acquisition Due Diligence

• An assessment includes a 1-week sprint as part of a 2-week client engagement to discover, analyze and prioritize remediation of vulnerabilities.

• As an acquiring company, this helps you make informed decisions surrounding the acquisition based on its security posture.

• As a startup, this assessment can strengthen your security posture and improve buyer confidence before you put yourself up for a potential acquisition or prepare for an IPO.

Step 2: Continuous Subscription

• Continuous Monitoring during the integration process leading up to the merger

• Synack Red Team proactively seeks out and remediates vulnerabilities throughout the SDLC lifecycle:

- Discovery

- Prioritization

- Remediation

- Education

Acquiree vulnerabilities are

patched prior to integration

Synack helps find and mitigate

exploitable vulnerabilities in

acquiree systems pre-integration

Acquiree vulnerabilities remain

undetected prior to integration

Acquiring company

confidently proceeds

with integration

Vulnerabilities are exploited

by adversaries resulting in

significant losses

Acquiring company

remains secure post-

integration

Acquiree introduces

vulnerabilities into

acquirer’s IT environment