Google Said to Be in Talks to Buy Cybersecurity Firm Mandiant

Google is in talks to buy cybersecurity firm Mandiant, the Information reported on Monday, citing a person with knowledge of the discussion. Mandiant’s shares closed up 16 percent on the Nasdaq after the news.

The company, which has a market capitalization of about $4.53 billion (roughly Rs. 34,850 crore), focuses on cyber-incident response and cybersecurity testing.

A deal could bolster Google’s cloud computing business, which generates more than $19 billion annually but has been losing billions of dollars a year, and help it compete with bigger rival Microsoft Corp, which also is reportedly interested in buying Mandiant, the report added.

Mandiant became a standalone entity again last year when FireEye, which acquired the company in 2013, sold its products business and the FireEye name for $1.2 billion (roughly Rs. 9,230 crore) to a consortium led by private-equity firm Symphony Technology Group.

Google and Mandiant did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

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