Continuing its aggressive moves in the area of protecting consumers, Microsoft announced Tuesday that it had finalized plans to acquire Sybari Software, most commonly known for its work in antivirus protection for messaging and collaboration servers. According to Microsoft, the acquisition is a key part of its security strategy.

Sybari is Microsoft's second purchase in the antivirus space after acquiring GeCAD Software in July 2003. "Through this acquisition, we're excited to be able to provide customers with a server-level anti-virus solution that delivers advanced file and content-filtering capabilities and the use of multiple scan engines," said Mike Nash, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Security Business and Technology Unit.