Ibas (company)
Ibas AS an acronym of its former name, Instrumentbyrået AS, "The Instrument Bureau") is a Norwegian company founded in 1978 and is a large business in Europe in the market of data recovery, data erasure and computer forensics. Ibas was listed on OSE Oslo Stock Exchange from 2004 to 2006.
Headquartered in the town of Kongsvinger, in Hedmark county, Ibas operates in the Nordic countries and in the Netherlands. The company is mostly known for performing difficult data recovery and computer forensics services at its on-site laboratories, using its in-house customized hardware and software tools, but also develops and sells software allowing customers to securely erase data at their own locations.
In 1995 Norman ASA acquired 50 percent of Ibas. The Norman ASA was listed on Oslo Stock Exchange on the 11th of August 1997. Norman ASA bought the remaining 50 percent stake in Ibas in 1999. In 2004 the two companies were de-merged and Ibas was listed as a separate entity on the Oslo Stock Exchange.
In the spring of 2005, Ibas announced that it was acquiring privately owned British competitor Vogon International Ltd (founded in 1985), which was planned to continue as a separate company until January 2006 when it would be integrated into Ibas. At the time of the acquisition, Vogon had roughly 80 employees spread over its five locations: Oxfordshire, England (headquarters); Munich and Cologne, Germany; Oslo, Norway; and Oklahoma, USA (the non-UK offices being wholly owned subsidiaries).
At 31 January 2006 it was announced that a division of Kroll Inc., Kroll Ontrack had completed the acquisition of Ibas AS.