In this interview, Nara Pappu, CEO at Zendata, discusses the challenges companies face with data privacy and security and how Zendata’s platform helps them navigate these complexities. He says, “Organizations operate on assumptions rather than understanding of the data flow. We want to bring in data flow visibility for companies of all sizes.”

Introduction to Zendata and the data problems it is solving

• Pappu explains that the average internet user generates a gigabyte of data daily, with only 5% of companies having sufficient privacy expertise. Zendata addresses this by providing visibility into data usage, sharing, and integration.
• Zendata primarily focuses on consumer data, specifically targeting B2C companies to help manage personal data such as personally identifiable information (PII) and protected health information (PHI).
• Consumer data includes identifiers and secondary attributes. Pappu explains that Zendata manages 55 attributes for financial services and e-commerce sectors, addressing data leakage and unauthorized sharing.
• Zendata focuses on privacy compliance, AI adoption, and transitioning from third-party to first-party data processes to prevent bias and lack of transparency.

What are the risks of data privacy and security?

• Pappu discusses the risks associated with data, highlighting a customer who had unknowingly shared user health data with Facebook Pixel beyond their public pages, leading to unauthorized data use for retargeting.
• Pappu talks about the emerging patterns in security and privacy, explaining that traditionally, companies focused on securing stored information. Still, with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), there’s now a need to ensure data is used for the correct purposes.

How Zendata leverages AI to protect privacy

• Zendata’s data protection ensures data is used only for approved purposes and provides synthetic data generation. This means using data appropriately and training models with synthetic rather than actual personal data to protect privacy.
• Pappu explains how Zendata leverages GenAI and its implications for PII. While there’s excitement and experimentation with GenAI across companies, ensuring data quality is crucial to avoid issues.

Zendata’s integrations and the potential of GenAI for personal data

• Zendata integrates with existing systems, beginning with public-facing surfaces to provide immediate utility without needing integration. They further integrate with tools like CI/CD processes for code scanning and SaaS layers.
• Pappu talks about their future plans to integrate with other Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) tools to provide a consolidated cybersecurity platform.
• Zendata has initially focused on mid-market companies, primarily in FinTech, e-commerce, and health tech sectors, which handle significant amounts of PII.
• Zendata initially operated on bootstrap funding to prove its use case before raising funds. They recently secured funding from investors including PayPal’s Firsthand Alliance and Pappu explains the areas the funding will be used on.
• Pappu foresees GenAI moving from experimentation to practical use cases and production systems. He expects new GenAI marketplaces to emerge and anticipates advancements in AI governance regulations.
• Pappu talks about Zendata’s stance on regulatory compliance, asserting their commitment to implementing effective and responsible data management, contrasting with superficial compliance measures like cookie consents and privacy policies.
• Pappu highlights GenAI potential to improve decision-making and mitigate risks associated with personal data, underscoring its critical impact on user experience and business success beyond regulatory mandates.

Guest: Nara Pappu (LinkedIn)
Company: Zendata 
Show: Let’s Talk

This summary was written by Emily Nicholls.