Cisco buys Web security company ScanSafe for $183M

Cisco has smartly acquired ScanSafe, maker of software-as-a-service Internet security tools, which means it can now tighten the integration between its own networking gear and ScanSafe’s defenses against malware and other attacks.

The $183M price for the company, founded in 2004, fits nicely into our Revenge of the South Bay theme even though ScanSafe’s offices are a block from VentureBeat in downtown San Francisco. Companies that make boring-but-utilitarian IT back end hardware and software are being acquired for prices well above those that most social network startups will fetch. The uncool kids are making money again.

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