“AI And ML Have Been Paramount in Building Automated Security Systems” Says Vishal Gupta

Can data carry privacy with itself wherever it goes particularly in challenging and complex environments that require multiple communication channels and increasing collaboration with external agencies? Achieving data privacy for a company largely depends on privacy regulation with a focus on user consent and user notice. But the matter of fact remains that being in control of parties having access to consumer data and how far we understand the consequences of sharing the data with vendors determines our data privacy preparedness. Seclore, a pioneer in building automated security systems, provides solutions for all unique data privacy problems. Analytics Insight has engaged in an exclusive interview with Vishal Gupta, Founder, and CEO, of Seclore.

1.What are the areas of specialization for Seclore? Could you please elaborate on the services offered and the industries catered to by the company?

Founded in 2010, Seclore is a data-centric security solutions provider that helps enterprises and governments protect digital assets wherever they go to prevent data theft and achieve compliance. We specialize in Data Protection in the context of cloud, collaboration, and data privacy. Seclore's has a core offering of a data-centric security platform on which the company offers solutions for data theft prevention, third-party risk management, email encryption, data-centric audits, and analysis.

With the increased focus on digitalization across industries, data security has now become a critical aspect of every sector. At present, the industries we cater to include BFSI, manufacturing, and government among others.

2.What inspired you to establish Seclore? Share details on your current responsibilities.

Seclore was started because we saw that enterprise investments in security and privacy were reaching nearly zero marginal utility and there needed to be a paradigm shift in the security world.

The fundamental insight that started the company and drives it even now is that no amount of security of infrastructure (devices, networks, applications) will guarantee the security of data. With this insight, we built the first technology which allowed security policies to be embedded within the data itself and not in enterprise infrastructure.

3.How is Seclore helping India build its cyber resilience?

Some of the largest defense, and investigative agencies, public sector units, and numerous private agencies marked as "critical infrastructures" use Seclore to protect their most confidential information. This has uplifted the security posture of these agencies while allowing them to collaborate internally and externally. From knowledge and thought leadership, Seclore invests heavily in security training and awareness in the whole ecosystem around enterprises.

We are committed to protecting India's information by giving our clients the ability to leverage best-in-class data security technologies to ensure that their data remains secure and trackable throughout the association process without compromising their productivity. Our solutions are tailored to the needs of each of our clients and cover a variety of data security aspects including data protection, cloud data security, data privacy and compliance, and third-party risk management.

4.Please elaborate on some of your products/services that are seeing high demand from your clients.

Seclore is helping numerous enterprises with the adoption of various cloud services like M365 by Microsoft. This ensures that data going to the cloud will be governed by enterprise security policies and not vulnerable to cloud infrastructure breaches. Seclore is also helping large banks, financial services companies, and government agencies in monitoring and containing third-party risk. Third parties here could be service providers, partners, lawyers, auditors, etc.

5.With the post-pandemic rapid digitalization, the industry needs more cybersecurity professionals. How is Seclore helping bridge this talent gap?

The pandemic brought forth unpredictable changes in terms of hybrid working and business management. To keep up with this change, almost all companies turned towards digital technologies such as the cloud to facilitate business continuity and smooth work management. This sudden digitization subsequently led to an increased demand for cybersecurity skills. While enterprises actively started hiring cybersecurity professionals, there was a huge shortage of skilled talent in the advanced cybersecurity space. In this context, there is a growing need for enterprises to focus on upskilling/reskilling programs to build a strong pipeline of cybersecurity professionals.

Even at Seclore hiring cybersecurity talent has been difficult. We have overcome this challenge by including robust cybersecurity and product training as part of our people onboarding process. Depending on the role, new employees go through training for security testing, secure coding, and cloud security. We have invested in online learning tools like LinkedIn Learning for people to upskill themselves at their own pace. Additionally, we sponsor professional certifications for employees on a case-to-case basis so that they can keep growing within the company.

6.How is the Data Security industry changing? What are some of the key technology transformations in this space?

With businesses moving to modern digital practices, cyber criminals have resorted to sophisticated cyber-attacks, breaking through the digital framework of enterprises.  

Artificial intelligence in combination with machine learning has been paramount in building automated security systems, natural language processing, automatic threat detection, and much more. However, on the flip side, it is also being used to develop smart malware and attacks that bypass the latest security protocols in controlling data.

Mobile has become the new target for cyber-attacks. It has all our personal information, financial transactions, emails, and messages and often contain extensions of enterprise applications.

With more and more businesses moving towards the cloud, security measures need to be continuously monitored and updated to safeguard data from leaks. Although cloud applications are well equipped with security from the operator's end, the greatest risk for breaches, phishing attacks, and malicious software lies at the user end.

Data safety will continue to be a prominent concern for organizations around the world. Whether it be for an individual or an organization, safeguarding digital data is the goal now. Any minor flaw or bug in the security system or software is a potential vulnerability for hackers to access critical information.

With the growth of 5G networks, a new era of interconnectivity will emerge along with the Internet of Things (IoT). This connection between multiple devices will also open them to vulnerabilities from outside, attacks, or unknown software bugs. 5G architecture is new in the Indian industry and requires a lot of research to make the system secure from external attacks. Every aspect of the 5G network might bring a variety of cyber-attacks that we might not be aware of.

7.Could you highlight Seclore's recent innovations in the Data Security space?

Seclore is a pioneer in the field of data-centric security with many firsts to its name. In recent times, we have created a solution that allows enterprises to migrate to the cloud (data, applications, …) without worrying about security, privacy, and compliance. We have also created a method by which the whole enterprise email infrastructure can be upgraded to zero-trust-based email collaboration.