Jamaican cybersecurity firm hires Guyanese tech analysts

Jamaican cybersecurity firm, Optimity Group of Companies plans to expand to oil rich Guyana, as the company seeks to invest in a technology company in the South American/Caribbean territory.

This was disclosed by Optimity Group’s founder and CEO, Mario Sparkes, speaking during an interview with Stabroek News at the Marriott Hotel, in Georgetown, Guyana.

The Optimity Group, consisting of MS Tech Solutions, Purple Team, and A.I. Tix, is interested in expanding to Guyana, underscoring “heavy focus” on cybercrime protection.

The Jamaican IT group revealed plans to invest in a technology company in Guyana to train locals in the field and also plans to hire them.

According to Sparkes, “the newly-found oil has sparked almost a meteoric rise in the development of Guyana. But modernisation comes with extreme and advanced technologies and those are used by citizens, governments, organisations, etc. All of this comes down essentially to data. Data is being transferred and everyone knows now that data is gold, and is even more valuable in many ways than fiat currency. You have to protect that data.”

Continuing, the Optimity Group’s founder and CEO said: “Guyana is essentially greenfield… . So we want to invest in setting up a security operations centre here in Guyana, which would be our redundant operating centre, and have it outfitted by Guyanese cyber analysts who we will train and invest in their certifications. We plan to have them deck our SOC… and as they grow, they are equipped to have their own start up, piggybacking on the experience and training acquired.”

Since Optimity Group was incorporated, it has been continuously superseding all expectations for what was considered possible for Jamaica in the global cyberspace. One of its companies, Purple Team – a cybersecurity company started in 2020, has been adamant in ensuring young, capable and enthusiastic Jamaicans are able to achieve nine industry standard certifications within a 12-month period.

Individuals as young as 16 years old, in waves of 10-15 students per iteration of the programme, are trained in the hard skills needed for the international standard of cybersecurity, in addition to soft skills such as email writing, conflict resolution and communication.