Headquartered in Brasilia, Brazil, GAS is a leading Internet banking, online payment and mobile banking security company. It serves many of the country's leading financial institutions and protects nearly 70 percent of Internet banking transactions in Brazil. With a presence in other state capital cities in Brazil, GAS employs more than 125 experts in the cyber security field. Financial terms of the acquisition are not being immediately disclosed.

GAS specializes in providing security solutions for Internet and mobile banking. These solutions aim to prevent various types of fraud, such as phishing, pharming and key logging. The company also offers its clients a security information database service - a consulting service that allows clients to stay up-to-date and educated on current threats in the industry.

"This acquisition marks an exciting time for our company as we look forward to continued growth in the Brazil market," said Thomas W. Swidarski, Diebold president and chief executive officer. "During the past several years, we have experienced great success in this region, and we are confident that GAS will be a meaningful addition to Diebold as we expand our security expertise and industry knowledge in Brazil. Looking ahead, we intend to provide breadth for GAS technology solutions and deliver similar offerings to Latin America and other international markets."

Studies carried out by the Brazilian Banking Federation (FEBRABAN) indicate that the Internet banking channel has significant potential for further growth. This channel already accounts for approximately 30 percent of the total banking transactions in the country. According to these studies, the volume of Internet banking transactions doubles every three years, and mobile platform transactions, although still an emerging trend, show incredible potential to become a prevalent channel in the near future.

"Industry executives agree that the key challenge for these channels is the security of the transactions, and today GAS is a leader in Brazil in providing logical security systems for this industry," said Joao Abud, Jr., president, Diebold Brazil. "It is critical to have software solutions that ensure the integrity of transactions against fraud. Our acquisition of GAS is another example of how we are committed to applying and incorporating new technology within our existing solutions portfolio, and delivering on our commitment to provide high-quality products and solutions to our customers in Brazil."

Hilton Silva, executive director, GAS, said, "Joining the Diebold team is a great opportunity to leverage local technology to further expand our security offerings. Our solutions are focused on identifying and preventing attack techniques that threaten the security of both operational environments and users within online payment, mobile transaction and banking systems. We believe our solutions provide a remedy for this global challenge."