Newsmakers: Vishwanath Ramarao & Naveen Jamal

Online fraud and spam mean business to these techies

Fraud, spam and misuse are the words one comes across often while looking for information on the professional history of Vishwanath Ramarao and Naveen Jamal, the duo who shot to fame early this week after Google acquired their cyber security firm, Impermium, which they co-founded along with an American Mark Risher.

The reason for these uncharitable references, however, is their shared passion for cyber security and their desire to safeguard the internet against network intrusion and other security breaches.

For people in the world of information technology, Ramarao and Jamal have been in the cyber security space "forever". According to an industry veteran who provides angel investment for technology start-ups and does not want to be identified, both Ramarao and Jamal studied in the US, and have been involved in cyber security roles at various companies ever since.

While Ramarao, who has a master's degree from Penn State University, continues to stay in the US, Jamal, a post graduate in science from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, returned to Bangalore a few years ago. Their last job, prior to founding Impermium three years ago, was with Yahoo's security division.

According to CrunchBase, a database of technology companies and people, Ramarao led engineering for Yahoo! Mail and was involved in protecting major components of the Yahoo! network from spam and fraud. Jamal, on the other hand, was a principal engineer (imperial anti-spammer) at the California-headquartered company.

Their deep connection with cyber security is reflective in a note published on Impermium's website titled "Impermium is Joining Google!" Impermium's mission, according to the note, is to rid the web of spam, fraud, and abuse. "As sites gain in popularity, criminals and miscreants are never far behind, and Impermium has worked hard to defend some of the largest and fastest-growing sites," the note says.

The acquisition by Google now has given their mission a wider playfield. "By joining Google, our team will merge with some of the best abuse fighters in the world. With our combined talents, we'll be able to further our mission and help make the Internet a safer place. We're excited about the possibilities," says the note. The terms of the acquisition and the deal value have not been disclosed.

A start-up incubating expert who knows Jamal says he is very thorough with his knowledge about the problems in the security space. He is so confident about his subject that it was 'inevitable' for him to go ahead and establish himself the way he has.