The UK's cybersecurity industry isn't short of talented people or interesting businesses. But some of the entrepreneurs doing genuinely interesting work in the field aren't necessarily the names that come up when people talk about the industry's biggest players.
From making cybersecurity tools accessible to people with disabilities to protecting students from online scams, Black-owned businesses across the UK are finding their own ways to tackle security challenges. And not all of them are building software. Some are helping businesses recruit cybersecurity specialists, while others are changing how people learn about online threats.
With October marking both Black History Month in the UK and Cyber Security Awareness Month, it's a good time to get to know some of the people behind these businesses and the work they're doing. The following ten Black-owned cybersecurity-related businesses are listed in no particular order and haven't been ranked.
1. CybSafe | Oz Alashe MBE
Human Risk Management and Cybersecurity Awareness
Oz Alashe MBE is the founder and CEO of CybSafe, a cybersecurity company that focuses on something technology alone can't fix: human behaviour. Its platform helps organisations understand how people make security decisions and identify where those decisions might expose them to cyber threats.
CybSafe uses behavioural science, data and personalised learning to help employees build safer digital habits. Rather than simply checking whether someone has completed security awareness training, the company focuses on understanding and improving what people actually do. Alashe brings an unusual background to the business.
Before founding CybSafe, he served as a lieutenant colonel in the UK Special Forces and was awarded an MBE in 2010. According to his CybSafe professional biography, his experience includes intelligence, complex human networks and security risk. Today, he's applying that experience to one of cybersecurity's most familiar challenges: helping people recognise and respond to digital threats.
2. Cybility | Michala Liavaag
Cybersecurity Consulting and Training
Michala Liavaag is the founder of Cybility Consulting, a UK cybersecurity consultancy helping organisations understand their security risks and work out what to do about them. Cybility offers services including cybersecurity assessments, risk management, security training and virtual Chief Information Security Officer (vCISO) support.
That last service gives businesses access to experienced security leadership without having to employ a full-time security executive. Liavaag has more than two decades of experience in IT and cybersecurity, but her background isn't limited to technology.
She’s also worked in music and other creative industries, which might explain where her nickname, The Cybersecurity Conductor, comes from. Through her consulting and training work at Cybility, Liavaag aims to make cybersecurity more accessible and understandable for businesses and their employees, while keeping the technical risks they need to manage in focus.
3. Cybarik | Dr Iretioluwa Akerele
Cybersecurity Consulting and Career Development
Dr Iretioluwa Akerele founded Cybarik, a UK-based cybersecurity company that blends security consulting with recruitment and professional training. Cybarik, based in Essex, provides advisory services, risk assessments and support with security controls to help organisations enhance their security practices.
It also works with people looking to build their cybersecurity skills and develop their careers. Akerele has more than a decade of experience in cybersecurity and holds a PhD in Information Systems Security. Her background includes security governance, risk management and compliance, all areas that help organisations establish how their systems and information should be protected.
According to Cybarik's company and team profile, the business is focused on strengthening organisations' security capabilities while supporting the development of skilled professionals. Akerele is also one of the co-founders of CyBlack, the cybersecurity education non-profit recognised later in this list.
4. Fezzant | Aliyu Yisa
Accessible and Inclusive Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity tools are supposed to help keep people safe online. But what happens when those tools aren't designed for people with disabilities? That's one of the problems Aliyu Yisa is addressing through Fezzant, a Manchester-based cybersecurity business focused on accessibility and inclusion.
Fezzant works across cybersecurity education, accessible security tools and inclusive workforce development. The company also looks at how organisations can design security processes that employees can actually follow, including people who might face additional barriers when using conventional security tools.
Yisa’s background is in software engineering and cybersecurity, so he has experience on both the development and security sides of technology. Fezzant has also taken part in the NCSC For Startups programme in the UK, which supports companies developing novel cybersecurity solutions.
According to Fezzant's accessibility mission, the business is also interested in creating opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in cybersecurity, both as technology users and as professionals working in the industry.
5. VIVIDA | Simeon Quarrie
Immersive Cybersecurity Learning
Simeon Quarrie is the founder of VIVIDA, a creative learning company that uses storytelling and immersive experiences to make complex subjects more accessible. One of its focus areas is cybersecurity awareness.
Rather than relying purely on traditional training presentations, VIVIDA creates learning experiences that are designed to grab people’s attention and help them retain what they have learnt. Quarrie has a background in creative production, which brings a different approach to cybersecurity education to the company.
His work brings together visual storytelling, technology and learning design to communicate subjects that employees might otherwise struggle to engage with. According to VIVIDA's founder biography, Quarrie was named UK Creative Entrepreneur of the Year in 2024 and has spoken on storytelling and innovation for organisations including Google, HSBC and Apple.
His company is another example of how creative skills can be applied to make important cybersecurity information easier to understand and apply.
6. Bestman Solutions | Owanate Bestman
Cybersecurity Recruitment and Talent Development
Owanate Bestman is the founder and director of Bestman Solutions, a specialist recruitment consultancy that connects businesses with professionals in technology, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence. The company helps organisations to find people for specialist and leadership positions, including roles that need technical security knowledge and experience.
It also supports employers with talent strategies, helping them understand the skills they need and where to find them. Bestman has spent more than 20 years building professional networks and making senior appointments across the UK, United States and mainland Europe.
His approach to recruitment focuses on building relationships and understanding what both employers and candidates want from a working partnership. As explained in the Bestman Solutions company profile, the business sees recruitment as more than matching people with job descriptions.
It's a different contribution to cybersecurity, but an important one. Even the most sophisticated security technology needs skilled people to implement, manage and maintain it.
7. Seidea | Stephanie Itimi
Cybersecurity Education and Career Opportunities
Stephanie Itimi founded Seidea to help Black and minority ethnic women find opportunities in the cybersecurity industry, a sector where it can be difficult to establish a career without the right training, professional connections or support. Seidea is a UK social enterprise providing cybersecurity education, career development programmes, mentoring and community support.
Its work helps women develop technical skills, connect with industry professionals and find pathways into cybersecurity careers. Itimi's own background spans cybersecurity, research and technology policy. She has also pursued doctoral research at Royal Holloway, University of London, and continues to work on questions involving cybersecurity and emerging technologies.
Through Seidea's education and community programmes, she's helped create opportunities for women who might otherwise struggle to access the industry's professional networks. Seidea’s work is especially relevant during Black History Month because it acknowledges that celebrating representation also means helping more people build careers and take leadership roles.
8. Kord | James Owusu
Digital Identity and Fraud Prevention
James Owusu is the founder and chief executive of Kord, a UK-based financial technology business that helps organisations with identity verification, compliance checks and secure payments. Kord works with regulated businesses including law firms, estate agents and conveyancers.
The platform combines processes that would usually require several systems, including client identity verification, money laundering risk screening, and client funds management. These services sit at the nexus of financial technology and digital security. They allow businesses to check who they are dealing with and reduce the risk of fraud in sensitive transactions.
Owusu has a background in financial services, having worked for NatWest and Barclays. His experience dealing with complex verification and administrative processes has helped shape the idea behind Kord.
The company’s identity verification and payments platform is an example of how technology related to cybersecurity can help protect everyday business transactions, even when the company that is providing the technology is not a traditional cybersecurity vendor.
9. TisOva | Valeen Oseh-Ovarah
Student Cybersecurity and Online Scam Prevention
TisOva was started by Valeen Oseh-Ovarah after she saw the effect of online scams on students, including friends that lost a fair amount of money. Before starting the business, she worked in cybercrime and fraud investigation in the United States.
That experience gave her an understanding of how online fraud works, but it was seeing people close to her become victims that inspired her to develop a solution focused on prevention. TisOva is a UK cybersecurity startup developing an AI-powered platform to help students recognise and avoid online scams.
Its planned capabilities include scam detection, online safety education and tools that could help universities understand emerging fraud threats. Oseh-Ovarah moved to the UK in 2023 to build the business. She talked about how the company grew out of those personal experiences and her professional background in her TisOva founder interview.
The platform is still under development, but the goal is clear: to help students protect themselves before online fraud can do any lasting damage.
10. Digital Interruption | Jahmel Harris
Testing and Security Research
Jahmel Harris is a cybersecurity researcher and is the technical brain behind Digital Interruption, a Manchester-based consultancy specialising in testing, vulnerability research and security assessments. testing is testing systems and applications for weaknesses that an attacker could exploit.
Digital Interruption helps organisations identify those weaknesses, understand the risks and improve their defences before problems become security incidents. The company has particular expertise in mobile security and also develops security tools, publishes technical research and contributes to the wider cybersecurity community.
Harris is known for his work in mobile security research, with his findings attracting international attention. He has also delivered workshops teaching other security professionals about mobile hacking techniques.
According to Digital Interruption's company background, its research has contributed to more than 30 registered Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs), which are publicly recorded software security vulnerabilities. His work is on the practical, technical side of cybersecurity, and exposing weaknesses helps others build more secure systems.
Honourable Mention: CyBlack
Sometimes, a good idea starts with something as simple as a direct message. That's how CyBlack got its start in 2021, when two cybersecurity professionals chatting on Twitter realised they were both helping students navigate the same challenges.
What began as a Telegram group where students could ask questions, share experiences and get advice eventually grew into a non-profit organisation. Today, CyBlack is helping aspiring cybersecurity professionals overcome some of the barriers that can make entering the industry difficult, particularly for those who can't afford expensive training or don't have access to professional networks.
Its work includes mentorship, scholarships, free learning resources, community events and virtual internships, giving people opportunities to develop their skills and connect with others in the field. As explained in CyBlack's mission and community information, the organisation believes financial circumstances shouldn't determine who gets to pursue a career in cybersecurity.
It's a fitting honourable mention for a list celebrating Black entrepreneurship, especially when you consider how many future founders and industry leaders might get their start through communities like this.
Final Thoughts: Recognising the People Building UK Cybersecurity
Black History Month and Cyber Security Awareness Month give us two reasons to recognise the people helping shape the UK's cybersecurity industry. And as these businesses show, there's no single way to make a contribution. Some are developing technology to protect organisations and individuals.
Others are helping people understand cybersecurity, find professional opportunities or access services that haven't always been designed with everyone in mind. The businesses featured here represent only part of that work.
There are more entrepreneurs, specialists and organisations whose contributions deserve recognition throughout the year, not just in October. At EM360Tech, we continue to cover the people, businesses and ideas influencing enterprise cybersecurity, including the work that doesn't always make the headlines.
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