When Christos Onoufriou, CEO of Odyssey Cybersecurity, met his business partner of 20 years, Lefteris Antoniades, he said that “the creature must not die with the question unanswered”. “We did our maths and, after two decades, with offices in six countries and more than 200 colleagues, we can say the story has been good for us,” he said during INSPIRE 2026.
“When we were starting out, first of all, the sector was called Information Security. The only ones who really understood it were banking institutions. And that was because, based on the standards they had, they had to have it. But today we have moved to another level. The interconnection of everyone with everyone and everything with everything has, obviously, reduced the value of physical security and increased the value of digital security,” he noted, among other things.
A pivotal moment was Odyssey Cybersecurity’s expansion into Greece, as, despite the initial scepticism that existed, the company managed to build its name and gain recognition. “More or less, they would ask us, ‘Where did you come from and who are you?’ For better or worse, there was scepticism because you are handling sensitive data… That is where we learned many things, how to expand, that good work pays off, but you also need to build an atmosphere around you that you are genuinely good. You have to build a name before someone tests you,” Mr Onoufrios pointed out, explaining that it takes effort, but also a little luck. “Even if you are good, you need a bit of luck. To meet that one person who will say, ‘We click. Come in, show us what you can do, ’ he stressed.
It is noted that, more than 15 years ago, the company had only one colleague in Greece, whereas today it has grown to 60 staff members, with Odyssey Cybersecurity’s CEO underlining the importance of “proving yourself in order to build”.
A difficult period for the company was the weekend of the 2013 haircut. “Although we were not haircut, suppliers abroad wanted to be paid. However, they understood what was happening and, to their credit, gave us time. It was something unprecedented for everyone. Our colleagues stood by the company and by the changes that needed to be made,” Mr Onoufrios said.
The discussion, “The Game Changers”, was moderated by Public Affairs Consultant at PUBLICIST CREATIVE COMMUNICATIONS, Gogo Alexandrinou.
