VMware bolsters cloud app security with Mesh7 buy

With a goal of making distributed applications more secure, VMware has announced plans to buy security vendor Mesh7 for an undisclosed amount.

Combining the acquisition with its other security wares, VMware aims to address modern applications that require reliable connectivity, dynamic service discovery, and the ability to automate changes quickly without disruption as they extend across multi-cloud environments, said Tom Gillis, senior vice president and general manger with VMware’s networking and security business unit, in a blog about the Mesh7 acquisition.

“Security teams and operators need better visibility into application behavior and overall security posture, and the developer experience needs to lead to more secure operations,” Gillis wrote.

Mesh7 offers a cloud-based, Layer 7 security service that can automatically find all L7+ interactions; it creates service interaction graphs, app data, and flow maps between app components to third-party domains, cloud infrastructure components and other applications, the company said. Additionally, Mesh7 conducts continuous baselining and drift detection from sanctioned behavior for APIs, data, services, messages, service interaction graph, and data flow maps, including cloud infrastructure access.

Once the deal closes, Mesh7’s security technology will be combined with VMware’s Tanzu Service Mesh to enable greater understanding of which applications components are talking to which using APIs, Gillis stated. The Tanzu Service Mesh sets up connectivity and security services for VMware’s Kubernetes cluster and cloud offerings.

“Developers and Security teams will each gain a better understanding of when, where and how applications and microservices are communicating via APIs, even across multi-cloud environments, enabling better DevSecOps,” he stated.