Tech behemoth Google, an unit of Alphabet Inc., has announced their plans to buy cybersecurity firm Mandiant Inc for $5.4 billion in light of the spike in cyberattacks and upturn in demand of security softwares.  

The shift in remote working during the pandemic has made a mark for organisations to consider strengthening their cyber security, with the recent Russia-Ukraine conflict contributing to the major interest. 

According to research firm Mordor Intelligence, the cybersecurity market is expected to more than double to $352.25 billion by 2026 from 2020, and Google’s move may seemingly create a ‘ripple effect’  for Amazon and Microsoft to fortify their own ventures.  

Microsoft, according to various news reports, was also a suitor for Mandiant.

Mandiant, which focuses on cyber-incident response and cybersecurity testing, became an independent standalone entity when FireEye Inc sold its products business and the FireEye name for $1.2 billion to a consortium led by private equity firm Symphony Technology Group.

Google said in their acquisition of Mandiant, which is slated to close later this year, will complement the security strengths of its Google Cloud business, which generates more than $19 billion annually, and beef up its security operations and advisory services.