Creating a cloud of privacy and security

In this age of 24/7 business, companies are turning to cloud-based file-sharing and synchronisation (FSS) tools. Now what’s that? They allow users to share files as well as sync them seamlessly from anywhere on any device. While this is a happy scenario to be in, on the downside, it allows users to control another user’s data and that opens the possibility of tampering.

“That is scary because you are opening yourself to major security risks that can damage your company’s reputation and might even kill your business,” says Kameswaran Subramanian, founder of ParaBlu.

Unlike most who saw it as a threat, Kamesh, who built a career on security and data privacy, saw it as a business opportunity. “We realised that if we could provide a cloud-based enterprise FSS wrapped in iron-clad security and data privacy, it could find more takers.”

Kamesh’s quest led to ParaBlu, a secure cloud-based EFSS solution. It packs features that established cloud services such as Dropbox, Box and Google Drive are yet to roll out. But ParaBlu’s biggest leverage came from a rare insight into how enterprise consumers view EFSS.

Dropbox-like services “We saw that public cloud services like Dropbox were becoming popular among individuals but companies viewed them suspiciously because there was no real layer of security and privacy required by businesses,” says Kamesh.

In one of the brain-storming sessions, the team came up with the idea that would finally deliver the answer to Kamesh’s question: Why not allow businesses to use their existing storage mechanisms such as on-premise NAS (network attached storage) and public cloud services such as Dropbox but encrypt the data which only a ParaBlu client can unlock. “This was a great moment for us. We had to think harder to uncover an obvious answer,” says Kamesh.

ParaBlu’s on-premise client gateway plugs into existing infrastructure and allows businesses to store encrypted data with their existing public cloud services such as Dropbox, Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive. “ParaBlu’s terms clearly specify that the customer’s data are his own,” Kamesh adds.

Today, ParaBlu acts as a gateway to anything outside an enterprise’s protected data environment. It offers full back-up and archival services, and complete security and privacy. ParaBlu solutions can run on bare-metal machine or a cloud virtual machine. They have the potential to be a game-changer for companies looking to move to a hybrid cloud model without compromising privacy and security.

Kamesh, a BTech in computer science from Amrita Institute of Technology and an executive MBA at IIM Bangalore, has worked for MNCs such as IBM, Bosch and Nokia. He was head of engineering for a start-up developing products for Swiss banks and this re-emphasised the importance of privacy and security.

Big challenge The biggest challenge Kamesh saw was that “data privacy” was not taken seriously in India; companies were ignorant of the risks of an un-secure cloud. Often enterprises preferred to simply shun the cloud instead of getting embroiled in unknown risks.

“I love building products,” says Kamesh. Founding ParaBlu by attracting the best of talent from large corporations paying big salaries was not easy for the start-up. But pieces did fall into place.

“It has been a wonderful journey so far,” Kamesh recalls. “We started the company couple of years ago with an idea. We started beta testing with live customers and spent considerable time in refining the product.”

But why has ParaBlu made it where other products have failed? “I have been in IT for a decade and have seen some of the finest products fail because they don’t solve the customer’s problem. Businesses do not want IT products – they want solutions for their pain-points,” says Kamesh.