In January 2009, AVG Technologies acquired Sana Security, a developer of identity theft prevention software. AVG Technologies acquired Exploit Prevention Labs (XPL) in December 2007 and incorporated that company's LinkScanner safe search and surf technology into the AVG 8.0 security product range released in March 2008. In 2006, the AVG security package grew to include anti-spyware as AVG Technologies acquired ewido Networks, an anti-spyware group. The AVG Free Edition helped raise awareness of the AVG product line. In 1997, the first AVG licenses were sold in Germany and the UK. The brand AVG comes from Grisoft's first product, Anti-Virus Guard, launched in 1992 in the Czech Republic.
