Massive Data Breach at Anthem Boosts Tech Stocks

Security companies soaring

There's no true, 100 percent sure way to predict when a stock will pop, but in Silicon Valley, a pattern has emerged that's making a lot of investors money: Follow the breach.

Once again, tens of millions of people have been hit by a security breach, this time at heathcare giant Anthem. The Country's second-largest health insurer, Anthem is the parent company of Blue Cross-Blue Shield. Early estimates have about 80 million customers in danger of having their personal information made public.

Bad news for many of us, but, as it turns out, good news for stockholders in Silicon Valley security companies. Palo Alto Networks, FireEye, Symantec, ProofPoint, and others are getting a big bump today, largely because of fear. 

As hackings and breaches like this one make headlines (and make their way into the most recent State of the Union speech), investors are taking advantage of the legitimate fear people have. Personal data? Medical records? Yikes! This stuff is supposed to be private.

It's not known, of course, if more money in the coffers of any of the above companies will put an end to the breaches. But Wall Street seems to feel that they're the first line of defense - and that's worth a lot of money.

Scott Budman is also on Twitter: @scottbudman

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