Hello, I am Mark Clarke
ABOUT ME
Mark Clarke
SOFTWARE ENGINEER | CLOUD SECURITY ENGINEER | IT CONSULTANT
I am a Cloud Security Engineer and IT Consultant with expertise in securing cloud infrastructures, designing resilient architectures, and protecting digital assets across AWS and hybrid environments. Holding the AWS Certified Security – Specialty and CompTIA Security+, I bring a strong foundation in both cloud and cybersecurity best practices.
I specialize in building secure cloud environments, implementing Zero Trust frameworks, and deploying intrusion detection, vulnerability management, and compliance controls that safeguard sensitive data. With hands-on experience in AWS, Kubernetes, Terraform, and Wazuh, I bridge the gap between development, operations, and security.
My approach blends security-first engineering with scalable cloud design, enabling organizations to innovate confidently while maintaining compliance and resilience. Whether securing multi-cloud infrastructures, strengthening SOC operations, or optimizing system performance, I deliver solutions that balance security, usability, and business growth.
EXPERIENCE
XPStudios, LLC
Founder & Principal IT Consultant | Nov 2010 – Present
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Founded and scaled a web development and IT consulting firm delivering secure, scalable, and user-centric digital solutions for over 200 clients across multiple industries.
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Designed and deployed custom web applications using Laravel and various CMS platforms, with integrated security best practices to protect sensitive client data.
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Directed the completion of 50+ e-commerce projects, resulting in measurable improvements in customer conversion rates, traffic growth, and revenue.
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Implemented cloud-based infrastructures leveraging AWS, Azure, and Proxmox, incorporating security hardening, IAM, VPNs, and intrusion detection to ensure resilience and compliance.
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Conducted vulnerability assessments and penetration testing with Nessus and Wazuh, remediating risks and strengthening client cybersecurity posture.
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Oversaw firewall configuration, Zero Trust deployments, and high-availability clusters, enabling business continuity and secure remote access.
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Led cross-functional teams of developers and designers, providing project management, mentorship, and technical oversight to ensure on-time, secure, and scalable solutions.
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Managed end-to-end business operations including project budgeting, client relations, and financial strategy, while maintaining a focus on security, compliance, and innovation.
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Championed the adoption of modern collaboration and development tools (GitLab, Trello, Slack, Jira), streamlining workflows and improving delivery efficiency.
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Stayed at the forefront of cloud security, DevSecOps, and web development trends, integrating best practices to continuously enhance user experience, performance, and system protection.
SKILLS
Expertise Area
Expertise in Cloud Security, Web Development, and Infrastructure Automation: Highly skilled in architecting, securing, and automating deployments across cloud and hybrid infrastructures. Demonstrated proficiency in leveraging Terraform, Ansible, Jenkins, and Kubernetes to deliver scalable and secure solutions, with a strong focus on DevSecOps and cloud-native security practices. Experienced in implementing Zero Trust frameworks, vulnerability assessments, and container security to protect business-critical applications.
Committed to applying industry best practices and leveraging expertise in web development frameworks, CI/CD automation, and content management systems, ensuring every solution is secure, efficient, and future-ready.
CERTIFICATIONS
CompTIA Security+
AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate
Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+)
AWS Certified Security - Specialty
PROJECTS
K3s Ansible Automation
Automated build of HA k3s Cluster with kube-vip and MetalLB
This playbook will build an HA Kubernetes cluster with k3s, kube-vip and MetalLB via ansible.
This is based on the work from this fork which is based on the work from k3s-io/k3s-ansible. It uses kube-vip to create a load balancer for control plane, and metal-lb for its service LoadBalancer.
High Availability Rancher on Kubernetes
Do you want an easy way to manage and create Kubernetes clusters?
Join me as we walk through installing Rancher on an existing high availability k3s cluster in this step-by-step tutorial.
876 Events: Production Migration to AWS
876 Events is an innovative and comprehensive platform for event organizers in Jamaica.
To handle traffic spikes from ticket drops and on-sale windows, I moved 876Events from Cloudways to a security-first AWS architecture. The platform now runs behind an Application Load Balancer on ECS/Fargate, connects to Aurora MySQL through RDS Proxy with TLS enforced, and stores uploads privately in S3. Secrets live in AWS Secrets Manager; background jobs run on SQS with a dedicated worker service; the scheduler is powered by EventBridge; and email is delivered via SES.
I built the entire solution via the AWS Console with a click-through checklist, architecture diagram, and rollback-ready runbook. Deployments are health-gated with circuit breakers, observability is centralized in CloudWatch, and the stack is designed for safe, reversible releases—exactly what 876Events needs during high-demand ticket events.