In a move to beef up its cloud security, Microsoft has acquired Israeli-based cyber security startup Aorato.

The talks between the two companies have been ongoing since July. Microsoft has not disclosed the amount paid to Aorato, but The Wall Street Journal is reporting a figure close to $200 million.

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Microsoft's Corporate Vice President of Cloud and Enterprise, Takeshi Numoto, announced the acquisition earlier today:

We all know corporate security is more important than ever. Nearly every day there are more headlines about breaches, fraud and data loss. Unfortunately, compromised passwords, stolen identities and network intrusion are a fact of life. Companies need new, intelligent solutions to help them adapt and defend themselves inside the network, not just at its edge.

Aorato's sophisticated technology uses machine learning to detect suspicious activity on a company's network. It understands what normal behavior is and then identifies anomalies, so a company can quickly see suspicious behavior and take appropriate measures to help protect itself.

The new cyber security firm should start integrating its wide variety of encryption techniques to Microsoft Azure businesses. The added security should stop any sort of password or account attack.

Aorato was founded in 2012 and has run two venture capital funds in the past two years, to keep the startup running. The startup raised $10 million earlier this year, with key investors including Glilot Capital Partners and Accel Partners.

The startup is based in Herzliya, Israel and currently employs 10 people. It is unclear whether the startup will remain in Israel or move over to Microsoft, we expect the former.

This is not the first time Microsoft has acquired Israeli startups and the technology scene in Israel is starting to heat-up, with Google recently acquiring cloud traffic app Waze for $1.1 billion.

TagsMicrosoft Azure, cloud services, Cyber Security, Aorato, Israeli startups