Apple-focused Jamf to buy Wandera for endpoint security

Apple-focused endpoint management company Jamf has agreed to acquire Wandera, a provider of cloud-based zero-trust security. The $400 million acquisition comes as the use of Apple products in the enterprise rises significantly.

Announced this week, the acquisition is Jamf's largest deal to date. Jamf offers endpoint management specifically for Apple products. It's a niche the company has dug out for itself in contrast to competitors like Microsoft and VMware, which focus on all brands of devices.

Wandera's cloud-based software enforces strict user and device authentication. It manages mobile devices from a network level instead of the operating system kernel level, said IDC analyst Phil Hochmuth. Because Apple limits kernel access on its devices, "this approach should work well for helping Jamf protect Apple devices."

An IDC survey of companies with 1,000 or more employees found 23% with macOS devices in the workplace in 2020, compared with 17% the prior year. According to IDC, just in the second quarter of 2020, shipments of macOS computers to enterprises grew 34% year over year.

The number of Apple products within enterprises grew dramatically during the pandemic. Many employees forced to work at home preferred to use the company's desktops and laptops.

"Due to a lot of the consumer success that Apple has had, those devices are top of mind," said Mark Bowker, an analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group.

Concurrently with the acquisition announcement, Jamf reported that revenue in the quarter ended March 31 grew 34% year over year to $81.2 million. The growth rate was the same in the previous quarter.

Jamf said it will offer jobs to all of Wandera's staff. Also, its leadership will help with the integration of the two companies. Jamf expects to close the deal by the end of the year. Wandera, founded this year, has headquarters in London and San Francisco.

Jamf has made other security-related acquisitions over the last several years. In 2018, the company acquired identity management firm NoMAD. The company's technology became Jamf Connect. In 2019, Jamf acquired Digita Security, an endpoint security firm.

Enterprise Strategy Group is a division of TechTarget.

Maxim Tamarov is a news writer covering mobile and end-user computing. He previously wrote for The Daily News in Jacksonville, N.C., and the Sun Transcript in Winthrop, Mass. He graduated from Northeastern University with a degree in journalism. He can be found on Twitter at @MaximTamarov.