Editor's Note: This is the first piece of a series of three articles that will be coming out over the course of the next couple of weeks about Gryphn and their ArmorText application.
Security is an intimidating topic for those not associated with the technology world. It speaks to there being something inherently wrong already, diminishing your sense of safety. Depending on what security you use, Pandora's box can be open or kept encrypted. The possibilities for unintentional disclosure are at large, but with Gryphn Corporation around, you are guaranteed a private future.
As a mobile, security, and privacy startup, Gryphn settled into D.C. to supply a security application for anybody sporting an Android smartphone. "The greatest threat in our mobile world comes from how we use our mobile devices; how we want to use our mobile devices; and the very nature of how our mobile devices are designed," reads their website. "Our smart phones were designed to make it convenient to do all of those “smart” things we were sold on when buying our smart phones while also making it simple to do a lot of really “silly” things both intentionally and unintentionally." With a multitude of ways to make an easy mistake that could potentially damage your reputation, Gryphn is committed to supplying an effective security experience to keep your mobile world as private as possible.
It all boils down to this: You will send texts that you would prefer others not to view. It's inevitable. They may be confidential business-related information or embarrassing personal information, but either way you want to keep them under lock and key. Rather than allowing for access to your professional and personal conversations, why not use something that will guard your most intimate texts from the general public? That's where Gryphn steps in with their hottest new application, ArmorText.
I was first introduced to the Founder of Gryphn back in February. As soon as I glanced up at his perfectly manicured beard and shockingly pink turban, I knew Navroop Mitter was a man of stature. I immediately recognized him from the livestream of Obama's #40 speech, but I chose to ignore my incessant need to gab about the firmness of Obama's hand shake. Brushing off the feeling of shock and awe from being in such close quarters with someone that I had grown to respect from afar due to his vast experience, the interview commenced.
As I proceeded to question Mitter about how the company progressed to where it is today, his answers were succinct, yet clearly passionate, portraying his commitment to his business. "I was a Senior Manager with Accenture's North American Security Practice where I spent time building information security practices in emerging markets," he said. "In a matter of twelve months I started my security career where I identified high value clients and crafted strategies to help them succeed. I then moved onto Argentina where I aided in creating the first near-shore security delivery center in the country."
He continued on, revealing to me his background of over a decade of security experience including his security focused leadership management roles at IBM as well as Accenture. He also hinted back to his youthful days at Boston University and even further back to his first startup experience at fourteen. With a background full of tremendous accolades, it has made him the ideal CEO for Gryphn.
Mitter met Bobby Saini, CMO of Gryphn, years ago, but a chance encounter at D.C. Entrepreneur Week and a mistaken email was what allowed them to reconnect. Saini's first dip into the startup scene was at fourteen with his very own business, coincidentally the same age that Mitter became an aspiring entrepreneur. Born and raised in D.C., Saini graduated from Fairfax High School and moved on to college over at George Mason University. He remained local, starting a government contracting company during his early years in college and then moved into a leadership role at RDB, one of the largest South Asian music group's new record label, Three Records.
Aaron Huttner, CTO of Gryphn, entered the picture when he and Mitter met at MoDevDC. Besides their instantaneous connection over a discussion about motorcycles, Mitter quickly realized that Huttner would be the perfect fit to Gryphn's founding team. Huttner attended both University of Miami and Carnegie Melon prior to working at a D.C. area digital marketing startup. He is also listed on numerous patents under review as an inventor.
The three co-founders have worked together to create something truly innovative to fill a gap in the security realm. They got together with an idea, built the prototype, launched the beta in February and almost immediately received interest. Perhaps there is a way to transform the boring topic of security into a sexy user-friendly product that you would actually want to use.
