Baldev Krishan Of iVALT On 5 Things You Need To Know To Optimize Your Company’s Approach to Cybersecurity
Be proactive as breaches are going to happen. The question is when, not if.
As a part of our series about “5 Things You Need To Know To Optimize Your Company’s Approach to Cybersecurity”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Baldev Krishan.
Baldev Krishan, Ph.D., is co-founder and CEO of iVALT and an expert in cybersecurity. With a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Baldev has developed innovative solutions to complex identity verification challenges. Under his leadership, iVALT has secured six patents and is a trailblazer in the identity market. His focus on seamless and secure user experiences has propelled iVALT to the forefront of the industry.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?
I was born in India in a middle class family and came to the USA as a student to pursue a graduate degree in EE. I worked for a year in Chicago and then got an assistantship to pursue my Ph.D. at Montana State University and after finishing my Ph.D., moved to Silicon Valley to look for a job. Within two days of coming here I got a job with a modem company. I developed the first 1200BPS Acoustic coupler and got my first patent. After 5 years, I joined ROLM corporation which was a leading company in PBX. My product was on the cover of MiniMicro Magazine. I started my first company with seed funding from a Chinese friend. After this, I have been through five other startups, and it has been a great journey though not an easy one. I enjoy being an entrepreneur.
Is there a particular story that inspired you to pursue a career in cybersecurity? We’d love to hear it.
Yes, around 2004, I started a company for a login to computers and applications using fingerprint sensors available on laptops. That was the beginning of use of biometrics for computer applications. However, the fingerprint sensor was hard to use and did not work very well for several users because of their fingerprints. We ended up selling the IP but, in my mind, the use of biometrics is going to be a key part of user authentication in the future. Around 2017, Apple and Google announced the use of cameras and fingerprint sensors for user authentication to access the mobile phones, this is when I conceived the idea of creating a platform on mobile phones to link online applications and any other application to the same platform. This was a totally new concept, but we had the vision of creating a single platform/identity for any application, anywhere. Industry pundits are now in total agreement with our vision.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began this fascinating career?
The most interesting story of my career is when I landed in Chicago for the first time. From the airport, I took a taxi to go to Barrington, a town near Chicago. I reached the taxi stand but the taxi guy was not allowed to take me to the destination where my friend was staying. While I was waiting for the local taxi, a couple approached me and asked me if I needed help as they could tell that I was new and lost. At that time, my communication skills were not that great, but I was able to communicate to them where I needed to go. They told me that the taxi services were not available at this time, but they offered to take me where I needed to go. I agreed and they brought their car and took me to my destination. There was no one home at that time. Then, the couple asked me if I would like to stay with them, as Illinois Institute of Technology was too far from Barrington. I said yes and the rest is history. We became great friends and remained friends forever. They came to my graduation and to my son’s wedding and I was so lucky to have met these people. This created such a good impression of the people in the US. I always cherish this incident and share this story with my friends.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person to whom you are grateful who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
Yes, I agree that help is always needed along the way for an entrepreneurial success. There are number of people whom I am indebted for my achievements and success. However, if I must list one person, that would be Dr. Jay Keyworth. He was an HP Board member and science advisor to President Reagan. He was chairman and Co-founder of one of my companies. Dr. Keyworth was a great thinker with a wealth of knowledge and vision. I learned a lot from him. He passed away about 10 years ago, but he remains in my heart for his advice and help along the way.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?
Yes, we will be adding PQE (Post Quantum Encryption) to our identity solution and it will be nearly impossible for hackers to decrypt user’s identity credentials.
What advice would you give to your colleagues to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Every job/task is a journey, and we all learn a lot from this journey. This journey is never smooth. Do the right things and take charge and do one thing at a time. Believe in yourself.
Ok super. Thank you for all that. Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview. The Cybersecurity industry, as it is today, is such an exciting arena. What are the 3 things that most excite you about the Cybersecurity industry? Can you explain?
This is a huge opportunity as user authentication solutions are fragmented.
1. Market opportunity is very big.
2. Current solutions for identity are so complex
3. You only need one identity for any use case, anywhere.
Looking ahead to the near future, are there critical threats on the horizon that you think companies need to start preparing for?
Nearly every day, breaches are happening, and most enterprises are not well prepared. To start, companies need to add another factor of user authentication. Today, it is called multi-factor authentication where the user is asked to enter a four-six digit number. However, even this can be compromised. Therefore, companies need to add biometric authentication (such as what we offer with iVALT) as a minimum to offset critical threats.
Do you have a story from your experience about a cybersecurity breach that you helped fix or stop? What were the main takeaways from that story?
Recently, there were two major breaches. MGM and United Health got affected tremendously. We are not engaged with them but iVALT’s deepfake solution would have aided to avoid the problem at MGM. And had United Health deployed a multi-factor authentication, the problem would have been avoided. The implementation of iVALT by United Health would keep hackers out.
What are the main cybersecurity tools that you use on a frequent basis? For the benefit of our readers can you briefly explain what they do?
Multi-Factor authentication (MFA) is presently used by us and nearly every service provided is asking customers to use MFA. In addition, for any WordPress website, we have added iVALT as an authentication for the admin to login to our WordPress sites.
How does someone who doesn’t have a large team deal with this? How would you articulate when a company can suffice with “over the counter “software, and when they need to move to a contract with a cybersecurity agency, or hire their own Chief Information Security Officer?
We help small business owners deploy our solution. Our solution is very simple. Users need to download the app and we help them to add a backend code and the business is ready to go. No contract needed, just a monthly fee per user. And we include a free trial.
As you know, breaches or hacks can occur even for those who are best prepared, and no one will be aware of it for a while. Are there 3 or 4 signs that a lay person can see or look for that might indicate that something might be “amiss”?
Threat detection is not our core expertise. We are focused only on the endpoint user identity and ensure that the person accessing the services is the right person.
What are the most common data security and cybersecurity mistakes you have seen companies make?
The reuse of passwords and no multi-factor authentication. Helpdesk persons are seemingly willing to share user credentials without identifying the person making the request. This is where iVALT’s solution is applicable.
Since the COVID19 Pandemic began and companies have become more dispersed, have you seen an uptick in cybersecurity or privacy errors? Can you explain?
Yes, because of pandemic, a number of employees and consultants are working remotely at unknown places. This is a breeding ground for hackers.
What are the “5 Things Every Company Needs To Know To Tighten Up Its Approach to Data Privacy and Cybersecurity” and why?
1. Be proactive as breaches are going to happen. The question is when, not if.
2. Do not share user credentials
3. Login from a secure place
4. Use multifactor authentication
5. Create a company policy to ask for identification (with iVALT’s app) of the person asking for credentials or resetting the same.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-) (Think, simple, fast, effective and something everyone can do!)
Use of iVALT for minimizing scammer calls and AI Deepfake related calls for money
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Our website is a great resource and in addition, your readers can sign up on our website to receive any new development updates related to iVALT.
This was very inspiring and informative. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this interview!
