Intel has acquired a password management startup to build out its Internet security efforts.
Montreal-based PasswordBox will become part of Intel Security, a branch of the chipmaker that focuses on Internet security, the startup said in a blog post last week. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
PasswordBox lets users store log-in credentials to websites and apps in a secure repository and log in to sites without having to manually type in passwords. The application also helps users create secure passwords without being forced to remember them. PasswordBox launched in June 2013 and has grown relatively quickly, amassing 14 million downloads over the last year and a half.
Security software became a key component in the chipmaker’s business after it acquired security firm McAfee in 2011. Earlier this year, Intel dropped the McAfee name from its suite of security products — including security software for computers, the could and servers — and rebranded them as Intel Security.
PasswordBox provided little information on Intel’s plans. The startup said for now it “will remain available as is” and added that it has a lot in store for the “next few months.” Intel Security is offering PasswordBox’s premium subscription service, which previously went for $12 per year, for free to all new and existing customers until the “release of a new product.”
“To our 14 million downloaded users, from everyone at Team PasswordBox, ‘Thank You’ doesn’t even come close to expressing our gratitude,” PasswordBox wrote on its blog. “You’ve trusted us to manage your digital lives, shared your feedback and ideas, and let us know how using PasswordBox has improved your daily lives.”
Neither Intel nor PasswordBox immediately responded to a request for comment.
Originally Posted on cnet.com
