NORTHBROOK, Ill., Dec. 8, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — UL, a global safety science leader, today announced the acquisition of InfoGard, a market leader in accredited security assurance services for the payment sector and federally mandated IT security products, and positions UL in the healthcare IT and biometric secure authentication sectors.

InfoGard, a privately held company based in San Luis Obispo, Calif., is a recognized leader in developing and providing testing, auditing, consulting, and certification services to leading IT solution providers in the Federal, Payment, and Healthcare IT markets.

UL acquired InfoGard because it enables capacity expansion in North America for its payment security business, adds technical capability and enhances UL for its federal business and diversification into new and emerging fields in the health IT and Biometric secure authentication sectors.

“Software and security assurance is a growing concern as more companies, individuals and governments deal with potential data breaches and vulnerable systems infrastructure in order to protect commerce, critical infrastructure, patient safety and privacy,” said Berend van Geffen, VP & General Manager UL Transaction Security. “The combination of UL’s existing services with InfoGard will provide confidence to companies on the security of their systems and peace of mind to consumers.”

UL and InfoGard’s combined portfolio will help strengthen global relationships with key customers. In addition, InfoGard will leverage UL’s global scale and resources to expand into new markets.

InfoGard’s employees will join UL and remain with the company. InfoGard will be led by Mark Shin and Doug Biggs of InfoGard, reporting up to Sherif Samy, UL Transaction Security North America Managing Director. The transaction closed on Dec. 4, 2015.

About UL
UL is a premier global independent safety science company that has championed progress for more than 120 years. Its more than 11,000 professionals are guided by the UL mission to promote safe working and living environments for all people. UL uses research and standards to continually advance and meet ever-evolving safety needs. We partner with businesses, manufacturers, trade associations and international regulatory authorities to bring solutions to a more complex global supply chain. For more information about our certification, testing, inspection, advisory and education services, visit http://www.UL.com.

About UL Transaction Security
UL’s Transaction Security division guides companies within the mobile, payments and transit domains through the complex world of electronic transactions. UL is the global leader in safeguarding security, compliance and global interoperability. For more information, visit https://www.ul-ts.com/.

About InfoGard
InfoGard was the first private IT Security laboratory approved by VISA and PCI to conduct payment device security testing services. InfoGard conducts Payment Transaction Security (PTS), Hardware Security Module (HSM) and Approved Scanning Vendor Validation (ASVV) testing under the PCI scheme. www.infogard.com

Michelle Press
PR Manager, UL
847-664-1966