Welcome to another edition of Brand Stories, part of our On Location coverage of Black Hat Conference 2024 in Las Vegas. In this episode, Sean Martin and Marco Ciappelli chat with Jeswin Mathai, Chief Architect at SquareX, one of our esteemed sponsors for this year’s coverage. Jeswin brings his in-depth knowledge and experience in cybersecurity to discuss the innovative solutions SquareX is bringing to the table and what to expect at this year’s event.
Getting Ready for Black Hat 2024
The conversation kicks off with Marco and Sean sharing their excitement about the upcoming Black Hat USA 2024 in Las Vegas. They fondly recall their past experiences and the anticipation that comes with one of the most significant cybersecurity events of the year. Both hosts highlight the significance of the event for ITSP Magazine, marking ten years since its inception at Black Hat.
Introducing Jeswin Mathai and SquareX
Jeswin Mathai introduces himself as the Chief Architect at SquareX. He oversees managing the backend infrastructure and ensuring the product’s efficiency and security, particularly as a browser extension designed to be non-intrusive and highly effective. With six years of experience in the security industry, Jeswin has made significant contributions through his work published at various conferences and the development of open-source tools like AWS Goat and Azure Goat.
The Birth of SquareX
Sean and Marco delve deeper into the origins of SquareX. Jeswin shares the story of how SquareX was founded by Vivek Ramachandran, who previously founded Pentester Academy, a cybersecurity education company. Seeing the persistent issues in consumer security and the inefficacy of existing antivirus solutions, Vivek decided to shift focus to consumer security, particularly the visibility gap in browser-level security.
Addressing Security Gaps
Jeswin explains how traditional security solutions, like endpoint security and secure web gateways, often lack visibility at the browser level. Attacks originating from browsers go unnoticed, creating significant vulnerabilities. SquareX aims to fill this gap by providing comprehensive browser security, detecting and mitigating threats in real time without hampering user productivity.
Innovative Security Solutions
SquareX started as a consumer-based product and later expanded to enterprise solutions. The core principles are privacy, productivity, and scalability. Jeswin elaborates on how SquareX leverages advanced web technologies like WebAssembly to perform extensive computations directly on the browser, ensuring minimal dependency on cloud resources and optimizing user experience.
A Scalable and Privacy-Safe Solution
Marco raises the question of data privacy regulations like GDPR in Europe and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Jeswin reassures that SquareX is designed to be highly configurable, allowing administrators to adjust data privacy settings based on regional regulations. This flexibility ensures that user data remains secure and compliant with local laws.
Real-World Use Cases
To illustrate SquareX’s capabilities, Jeswin discusses common use cases like phishing attacks and how SquareX protects users. Attackers often exploit legitimate platforms like SharePoint and GitHub to bypass traditional security measures. With SquareX, administrators can enforce policies to block unauthorized credential entry, perform live analysis, and categorize content to prevent phishing scams and other threats.
Looking Ahead to Black Hat and DEF CON
The discussion wraps up with a look at what attendees can expect from SquareX at Black Hat and DEF CON. SquareX will have a booth at both events, and Jeswin previews some of the talks on breaking secure web gateways and the dangers of malicious browser extensions. He encourages everyone to visit their booths and attend the talks to gain deeper insights into today’s cybersecurity challenges and solutions.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the conversation with Jeswin Mathai offers a comprehensive look at how SquareX is revolutionizing browser security. Their innovative solutions address critical gaps in traditional security measures, ensuring both consumer and enterprise users are protected against sophisticated threats. Join us at Black Hat Conference 2024 to learn more and engage with the experts at SquareX.
Learn more about SquareX: https://itspm.ag/sqrx-l91
Note: This story contains promotional content. Learn more.
Guest: Jeswin Mathai, Chief Architect, SquareX [@getsquarex]
On LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeswinmathai/
SquareX is building the world’s first browser-native security agent running ML-based attack detection algorithms.
