Sophos has laid off around six percent of its staff.

In a statement to The Register, the company said the staff it has released are no longer needed following the acquisition of Secureworks, and that entity is no longer a public company.

Sophos has also cut some roles that were duplicated across the two companies.

"Staff changes and redundancies are difficult at any time, and we deeply appreciate the contributions of our collective employees globally who have worked hard to bring both companies to where we are today," a spokesperson told The Register.

Organisational changes

In an email to SC UK, a Sophos spokesperson said: "To further align our business with how we are our accelerating growth this fiscal year and beyond, and following the close of the Secureworks acquisition, we are making organisational changes that include some role eliminations and the start of consultation periods where required.

"This will impact roughly six percent of our combined companies, which is also due to reducing positions that are no longer needed when Secureworks delisted as a public company and streamlining duplicative roles as a result of the acquisition.  

"Staff changes and redundancies are difficult at any time, and we deeply appreciate the contributions of our collective employees globally who have worked hard to bring both companies to where we are today. For those leaving, we thank them for their expertise and commitment, and we’re providing financial support, well-being resources and career transitional services to help when they depart."   

The statement went on to say that changes in the cyber-attack landscape are driving an urgent shift in security needss, and the company is increasing investments in essential competencies, "with the addition of Secureworks’ and other new leaders and experts who have joined us in key departments over the last year.”

Dan Raywood Senior Editor SC Media UK

Dan Raywood is a B2B journalist with more than 20 years of experience, including covering cybersecurity for the past 16 years. He has extensively covered topics from Advanced Persistent Threats and nation-state hackers to major data breaches and regulatory changes.

He has spoken at events including 44CON, Infosecurity Europe, RANT Conference, BSides Scotland, Steelcon and ESET Security Days.

Outside work, Dan enjoys supporting Tottenham Hotspur, managing mischievous cats, and sampling craft beers.