Google has announced that it is acquiring the “dynamic cyber defense and response” company, Mandiant. Google will pay $23 per share in cash which will come to a total of $5.4 billion and once the transaction completes, Mandiant will become part of Google Cloud.
Commenting on the acquisition, Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud, said:
“Organizations around the world are facing unprecedented cybersecurity challenges as the sophistication and severity of attacks that were previously used to target major governments are now being used to target companies in every industry. We look forward to welcoming Mandiant to Google Cloud to further enhance our security operations suite and advisory services, and help customers address their most important security challenges.”
By acquiring Mandiant, Google Cloud will inherit a range of services including advisory services, threat detection and intelligence, automated tools that streamline threat responses, testing and validation to help customers ensure their setups are effective, and managed defence tools.
Mandiant’s CEO, Kevin Mandia also chimed in:
“There has never been a more critical time in cybersecurity. Since our founding in 2004, Mandiant’s mission has been to combat cyber attacks and protect our customers from the latest threats. To that end, we are thrilled to be joining forces with Google Cloud. Together, we will deliver expertise and intelligence at scale, changing the security industry.”
The acquisition is expected to close later this year, according to Google. The deal is subject to customary closing conditions such as the receipt of Mandiant stockholder and regulatory approvals. It is important to note that Mandiant was the company which investigated and exposed the SolarWinds cyberattack early last year.