Google to acquire Mandiant in $5.4 billion deal

In one of the biggest cybersecurity deals in years, Google on Tuesday announced that it intends to buy Mandiant and integrate it into its cloud computing business.

The "definitive agreement" values the cybersecurity and incident response firm at around $5.4 billion, inclusive of net cash. The company's stock price shot up about 20% on the news, increasing from about $18.75 per share on Monday to $22.50 per share early Tuesday morning.

Google has entered into an agreement to acquire @Mandiant, a leader in dynamic cyber defense and response. We look forward to welcoming the team to Google Cloud → https://t.co/a7WYhL4JTU pic.twitter.com/UZ0nbYbiZU

— Google Cloud (@googlecloud) March 8, 2022

The acquisition would be Google's second biggest purchase of all time, after buying Motorola Mobility in 2012 for $12.5 billion. Google soon after sold the company to Lenovo for a huge loss.

Mandiant, founded in 2004 as Red Cliff Consulting by former United States Air Force officer Kevin Mandia, gained prominence in the cybersecurity industry for its detailed reports on state-linked cyberespionage campaigns and incident response work. The firm was acquired in late 2013 by FireEye, valuing the company at more than $1 billion. After years of lackluster growth, Mandiant sold FireEye's products business and brand to Symphony Technology Group for $1.2 billion last June.

Prior to Google's announcement, rumors were circulating that Microsoft was pursuing a deal to acquire Mandiant.

Google said it would use the acquisition to enhance security offerings for its cloud product.

“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,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud. “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.”