Kevin Mandia joins Amazon board of directors

Amazon has elected Kevin Mandia to its board of directors, effective September 8. Mandia founded Mandiant and led it as chief executive until Google acquired the company in September 2022, and has spent more than 30 years working on cyber threats across the public and private sectors.

Amazon described cybersecurity as one of the most consequential risks organisations face and cited advances in AI as a reason the threat landscape keeps shifting. The company said the appointment puts that expertise at board level, where directors set the questions management must answer.

Mandia currently holds two roles: founder and chief executive of Armadin, a security company focused on large and complex environments, and co-founder and general partner at Ballistic Ventures, where he funds and mentors security founders.

His government work includes service on the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee and CISA’s Cybersecurity Advisory Committee. He previously worked as a computer security officer at the Pentagon and as a special agent in the US Air Force Office of Special Investigations.