The M&A trend that continued nearly unabated in the security industry –among both integrators and manufacturers in 2023 – topped the list of most popular stories on SecurityInfoWatch in the past year.
The biggest moves came from Carrier, Bosch, and ADT, but other hot issues such as retail theft, right-to-repair battles in several states, damaging cyber-attacks, massive legal judgments, and even our new awards programs, were among the most closely followed themes by SIW readers this year.
Here's a closer look at the top 10 most clicked news articles of the year in SecurityInfoWatch and check out the top 10 most impactful acquisitions of 2023 as well.
Top News Stories
1. Bosch to sell its security products business: In what the company called a “realignment,” Bosch Building Technologies announced in late October that it is divesting its video surveillance, access control, intrusion detection, and communications products and focus on its building systems integration business powered by the recent acquisitions of Climatec and Paladin Technologies. Bosch’s fire alarm business will remain with the company. As of press time, Bosch had not yet announced a buyer. “Given their size, I would suspect that Bosch will be targeted by a VC fund as opposed to an existing vendor,” said Oliver Philippou, Omdia’s Senior Research and Analysis Manager for Physical Security Technologies.
2. Carrier announces its intention to exit the fire and security business, makes late-year sale to Honeywell: Carrier announced in July it would get out of the fire and security business and put LenelS2, Onity, Supra, Kidde and other brands up for sale. Honeywell snapped up Carrier’s Access Solutions business – LenelS2, Onity and Supra – in December, although the transaction is not expected to be completed until Q3 of 2024. Read more about Honeywell’s plans for integrating the brands into its platform.
3. SecurityInfoWatch announces winners of Readers’ Choice Awards: In its second year, our Readers’ Choice Product Awards attracted 79 vendor submissions and more than 1,800 unique voters – the very people who use, install, and market these security products every day. Winners of the awards were announced on Nov. 9 in 15 different categories and included top honors for Suprema, Genetec, HES by ASSA ABLOY, dormakaba, Axis Communications, Milestone Systems, Digital Watchdog, WeSuite, PedestalPRO, Ajax Systems, System Surveyor, Viking Electronics, TRENDnet, and Nice North America.
4. Vivint ordered to pay $189 million in damages to CPI Security: Vivint Smart Home’s string of legal troubles continued in February when a federal jury awarded CPI Security Systems, a competitor of Vivint, $189 million in damages after an eight-day trial in North Carolina. CPI sued Vivint in 2020, claiming the company was using deceptive and improper sales practices to steal CPI’s customers. Punitive damages made up $140 million of the verdict, which Vivint said it intended to appeal. Later, in October 2023, Vivint again found itself on the wrong end of a judgment, when a Texas federal court awarded video doorbell company SkyBell $45 million in damages for patent violations.
5. Target CEO predicts retail shrink could cost $500 million: Retail theft made headlines again in 2023, as organized theft rings, in some cases, brazenly lifted merchandise from retailers across the U.S. It was even the subject of Congressional testimony in December. Brian Cornell, Target’s Chairman and CEO, raised eyebrows when he said worsening shrink rates are putting “significant pressure” on financial results, with a reduction in profitability for the company by more than $500 million compared with last year if current trends continue.
6. Right to repair fight continues: Right-to-repair (RTR) laws championed by consumer advocates were taken up in states across the country again this year, which gave the security industry some heartburn. The industry did score a legal victory in New York state, where the Fair Repair Act was amended by lawmakers to include exemptions for security devices. The Security Industry Association said a total of 80 RTR bills were filed across the U.S. at the state level in 2023, and none of the bills included security exemptions.
7. Examining the cybersecurity implications of quantum computing: Not all big stories this year were about industry shakeups or legislation. Some were about major trends of concern for the industry, such as quantum computing and how it could affect cybersecurity. Robert Burns, Chief Product Security Officer for Thales Cloud Protection & Licensing, said companies unprepared for quantum threats could become victims to new and unstoppable breaches and ransomware attacks.
8. Hikvision cameras hacked, feeds sold on dark web: First exposed by a July investigation by IPVM, hackers gained access to Hikvision cameras using the company’s Hik-Connect mobile app to distribute pornography. In a statement to SecurityInfoWatch.com, Hikvision said it received an email from IPVM alleging that criminals had used its cameras to record “unconscionable things.” The company said lawyers immediately reported the allegations to the U.S. Department of Justice, multiple offices of the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
9. SIW, Security Business, Security Technology Executive honor inaugural Innovator Award winners: The new award program unveiled in July honors visionary individuals – as chosen by their peers – across the spectrum industry, including integrators, consultants, end-users and manufacturers. It is focused on the people who transform, modernize or otherwise make a tangible impact on our industry as a whole. Featured winners this year included David Antar (IPVideo), Michael Garcia (HID Global), Lawrence Garcia (AmeriGuard), Jason Lutz (Resideo), Daniel Oppenheim (Affiliated Monitoring), and Ryan Schonfeld (HiveWatch).
10. ADT Commercial rebrands to Everon: After being acquired by private equity firm GTCR, ADT Commercial broke away from ADT Security Services in October and moved forward as a standalone company under the name Everon. CEO Dan Bresingham said Everon would “evolve to better respond to the security, fire and life safety needs of commercial environments.” Everon went on to make its first integrator acquisition in December, adding Kentucky-based NewTech Systems.
Top Mergers & Acquisitions
1. Bosch acquires Paladin Technologies (July): Adding the largest integrator in Canada paved the way for Bosch to refocus its North American efforts on security integration and put its security products business units up for sale.
2. ADT divests its commercial security business (August): Private Equity firm GTCR, which previously owned Protection 1 and ASG, got back into the industry with the $1.6B acquisition of ADT Commercial, as ADT Security Services turned its attention fully to the residential and smart home market.
3. Pavion acquires 8 security integration companies: Since Corbett Technology Solutions Inc. (CTSI) relaunched as Pavion on Oct. 7, 2022, it acquired 8 security integration companies in 2023: Short Circuit Electronics of Missouri (Jan. 12); Cincinnati-based Turnkey Technology (March 1); San Jose, Calif.-based Netronix Integration (March 7); Security Source of Andover, Mass. (April 4); Calif.-based Premier Security Solutions (May 10); K&J Integrated Systems of Boston (July 18); Oregon-based REECE Complete Security Solutions (Aug. 3); and San Jose, Calif.-based RFI Enterprises (Aug. 17).
4. Pye-Barker Fire & Safety acquires 27 more companies: Pye-Barker continued its ultra-aggressive acquisition strategy in 2023, which included adding 19 alarm/security companies: Bevan Security Systems (Jan. 12); AC Daughtry Security Systems (March 1); Amherst Alarm (March 8); Shiver Security Systems (March 15); The Hartline Company (April 12); Vanguard Fire & Security Systems (May 3); Acadiana Security Plus (June 16); Advanced Engineered Systems (July 20); AAA Fire Safety & Alarm (Aug. 15); Iowa Fire Equipment Co. (Sept. 12); AMSconnect (Sept. 14); Maximum Security (Sept. 19); Comtron Systems (Oct. 5); Koetter Fire Protection (Nov. 2); Adroit Systems (Nov. 8); four Sonitrol locations (Nov. 15); and Alarmguard Security and Sentry Watch (Dec. 14).
5. Becklar’s Eyeforce acquisition (June): Becklar says combining Eyeforce's video monitoring services with its enterprise monitoring, personal health and safety, and workforce safety solutions “results in the market's broadest...portfolio of connected safety offerings in North America.”
6. NRG Energy finalizes Vivint acquisition (March): NRG’s energy services combined with Vivint’s smart home solutions come together to provide additional services for customers across power, natural gas, and essential home services segments.
7. ASSA ABLOY closes Spectrum deal (June): A long legal battle with federal regulators finally ends with ASSA ABLOY’s divestiture of Emtek and its smart residential business, and the acquisition of Kwikset and Baldwin.
8. Alula merges into M2M Services (October): Five years after its unveiling, the Alula name will now become a flagship brand within M2M Services. Read more in this Q&A with Alula President Dave Mayne.
9. IDIS acquires Costar (August) – The companies have enjoyed a long-term relationship, with roughly 60% of Costar Video products already made by IDIS. Read this Q&A with Costar’s Mike Rose.
10: Konica Minolta enters security integration: By acquiring Force Security Solutions, an end-to-end managed security service provider, the company intends to provide managed services and work closer with end customers.
John Dobberstein is managing editor of SecurityInfoWatch.com; Paul Rothman is Editor-in-Chief of Security Business magazine.
