Mandiant CEO Kevin Mandia joins Cohesity Board of Directors

Cohesity, next-gen data management company, has announced the appointment of Kevin Mandia, CEO of Mandiant, to its board of directors. Mandia, one of the world’s foremost cybersecurity experts, brings more than 25 years of experience in information and cybersecurity to Cohesity’s board. He is sought after by the US government and Fortune 100 companies to spearhead rapid response when cybercriminals strike.

The company also announced the formation of the Cohesity Security Advisory Council. Mandia will lead the council which brings together other visionaries with deep security and IT expertise from a host of enterprise and government agencies -- including Mandiant, Netflix, Facebook, and the National Security Agency (NSA).

Mandia said: “We’ve recently witnessed an explosion of vicious ransomware attacks where cybercriminals are getting smarter, often seizing legacy backups in an effort to paralyze companies and force payouts. Data security and data management leaders must work hand-in-hand to keep bad actors in their place.

“I’m excited to join Cohesity’s board as the company plays a critical role in helping enterprises improve their security posture. In my mission to help organizations protect themselves from cyberattacks, Cohesity’s modern data security architecture and focus on defending data and recovering from attacks is a significant asset in the fight against cybercrime.”

Sanjay Poonen, CEO and President, Cohesity added: “In the current threat landscape, it’s increasingly clear that a new approach to data security and data management is required.

“I’ve known and admired Kevin for years in his mission to help companies protect themselves. His unique and unparalleled understanding of the security environment, as well as his trusted advisor status with so many boards, CEOs, and CISOs will be invaluable as we jointly focus on helping companies win the war against cybercrime. I’m looking forward to partnering with him and the rest of the experts on our Cohesity Security Advisory Council who are all well-known security thought-leaders in their own regard, as we strive to make the world a safer place.”

A modern security advisory council for a modern era

The newly formed Cohesity Security Advisory Council will advise the Cohesity team, customers, and partners on security trends and emerging cyber threats and vulnerabilities - providing thoughtful insights on product innovations, and engaging with compliance, government, and industry groups to help develop and shape standards and practices for data security and cyber resiliency. There will be a series of regular council meetings, and customer and ecosystem security meet-ups for CISOs to exchange best practices and elevate data protection and security.

In addition to Mandia, the council is comprised of leading industry experts, including:

• Alex Stamos: Director of Stanford Internet Observatory, partner at the Krebs Stamos Group, and former CSO at Facebook and Yahoo!.
• Jason Chan: Former vice president of Information Security at Netflix.
• Marianne Bailey: Partner at Guidehouse, and former senior cybersecurity executive at the NSA.
• Laura Barrowman: Current Cohesity board advisor and chief information officer at Credit Suisse.
• Sheila Jordan: Current Cohesity board advisor and chief digital technology officer at Honeywell, former CIO at Symantec.

Gaurav Garg, Chairman of the Board says: “I’m excited to have Kevin join the board as his insights and proficiency in security will be invaluable to further inform our strategy.

"The board and I couldn’t be more pleased to welcome him, and we look forward to leveraging his deep knowledge to help our customers dramatically reduce the potential impact of cyberattacks while simplifying the management of their data.”