Fortinet records 5.4 million cyber threats in Jamaica in Q1 2026

Jamaica registered 5.4 million cyber threats in the first quarter of 2026, cybersecurity firm Fortinet reported, as criminals increasingly deploy artificial intelligence to launch faster, more sophisticated attacks.

The quarterly tally follows 46.7 million attempted cyberattacks recorded in Jamaica across 2025. Fortinet Jamaica also noted more than five million attack attempts in early 2026, including about two million active scanning attempts in the first quarter alone, after seven million such scans over the full previous year.

According to Fortinet, threat actors are using AI to automate assaults and pose as senior executives. Senior systems engineering manager Emmanuel Oscar said the headline numbers matter less than what sits behind them, with attackers moving more quickly and more quietly while many organisations still lack the technical controls needed to spot new forms of intrusion.

Oscar linked spikes in malicious activity to major national events. After Hurricane Melissa last year, he said, criminals exploited public vulnerability through online scams and ransomware, prompting government warnings aimed at people in Jamaica and in the diaspora. Activity then eased in a later quarter, he added, as conditions shifted.

Beyond service disruption, breaches carry a heavy financial burden. Oscar put the typical global cost of a data breach at about US$5.5 million and upward, noting that Caribbean costs often run higher because slower response times leave incidents open longer.

Fortinet urged businesses and public bodies to treat cybersecurity as an ongoing programme, pairing technology investment with staff training.

Separately on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the main index gained 3,352 points while the junior market index slipped four points. Advancers included Sagicor Real Estate Finance United States dollar shares, Knutsford Express, Image Plus Consultants, First Rock Real Estate Investments and Dolphin Cove. Declining issues included MPC Caribbean Clean Energy, Sagicor Real Estate X Fund, Access Financial Services, Consolidated Bakeries and Sagicor Credit Investments. Eighteen stocks closed unchanged.

At the close of foreign exchange trading, banks and cambios sold the United States dollar at an average of $159.14, the Canadian dollar at $113.52, the British pound at $215.87 and the euro at $180.74.