This week federal anti-trust regulators gave Google clearance to complete their $625 million acquisition of web security company Postini, which was announced last month. Google plans to use Postini to boost security for their hosted application suite Google Apps which include Gmail, Calendar, Talk, Docs and Spreadsheets.

Postini claims its industrial strength antispam technology is used on 10 million systems by 35,000 businesses worldwide. The all-cash deal aims to boost confidence from businesses that have expressed concerns over the potential risks of using Google’s suite of hosted applications.

“With this transaction, we're reinforcing our commitment to delivering compelling hosted applications to businesses of all sizes. With the addition of Postini, our apps are not just simple and appealing to users -- they can also streamline the complex information security mandates within these organizations,” said Eric Schmidt, Chief Executive Officer of Google.
The acquisition is expected to close later this quarter.