Raytheon Buys Cybersecurity Company Websense For $1.9 Billion

U.S. weapons and electronic equipment manufacturer Raytheon announced Monday it will buy the cybersecurity company Websense for $1.9 billion, including debt. The deal between Raytheon and the private equity firm Vista Equity Partners, which owned Websense, is the latest example of the growing demand for cybersecurity products in the wake of high-profile hacks on Sony, Anthem health insurance and a number of retailers.

Raytheon said it will combine its existing cybersecurity unit with Websense, at which point Vista Equity will invest $335 million for a 19.7 percent equity stake in the venture. The acquisition deal is the largest in 10 years by one of the top five contractors in the U.S., the Wall Street Journal reported, and is seen as evidence that state-sponsored hacks will continue to occur.

Texas-based Websense was founded in 1994 and has over 1,500 employees located around the world. As of the end of 2014 Raytheon had 61,000 employees and generated $6.1 billion in sales that year alone. Raytheon will own 80 percent of the new company, and Vista Equity will own 20 percent.