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Are you willing to risk becoming an unfortunate statistic? With one in four people becoming a victim of online crime, it is highly likely that if you have not yet been victimized, you may soon be. Enter Aura.
Founded by entrepreneur Hari Ravichandran, Aura has created a one-stop solution to protecting you and your family online. It combines technical solutions like antivirus, VPN, and password management with additional protection like identity theft monitoring, spam call filtering, and financial fraud protection across every device in return for a monthly subscription.
The inspiration behind Aura was deeply personal for Hari. In 2014, Ravichandran’s identity was stolen. He discovered this when his bank denied him a mortgage, and he realized his credit rating had plummeted. After some digging, Hari eventually figured out that his identity had been hijacked. It took him weeks to sort out the complicated ramifications of this traumatic event. It took even longer to discover the tools available to protect him and his family. There was no single comprehensive solution. The best he could do was subscribe to eight different services, leaving him vulnerable. Aura was born.
Technology and entrepreneurship are not new to Hari. Growing up in India, Hari was introduced to the world of entrepreneurship at an early age, with both his parents owning a publishing company. His passion for technology was ignited when he encountered an 8085 microprocessor at 10. As a graduate student at Stanford in the 1990s, witnessing the rise of giants like Yahoo and Hotmail fueled his entrepreneurial spirit.
Before Aura’s inception, Hari had already established his reputation in the tech world as the CEO of Endurance International Group (EIG), a web-hosting company he founded in 1997. Under his leadership, EIG soared to a valuation of over $3.5 billion. However, his journey was not without its challenges. The dot-com crash posed a significant obstacle. However, through perseverance and pivoting to a subscription-based model, Hari not only weathered the storm but emerged even stronger.
His unique perspective from transitioning from a billion-dollar CEO to laying the groundwork for a startup from scratch sets him apart in the industry. Hari’s ethos revolves around being a builder at heart, always looking to leverage technology for the greater good. This belief was instrumental in growing Aura from its nascent stages to an industry leader. Thanks to significant funding from notable names like Warburg Pincus and Jeffrey Katzenberg, Aura achieved unicorn status with a valuation of $2.5 billion within a few years.
One of Hari’s most cherished memories is a piece of advice from his father. Before embarking on his journey to the US at 14 as part of a Rotary exchange program, his father, a professor and entrepreneur, advised him to “find a way to never come back.” This counsel resonated deeply with Hari, instilling in him a drive to relentlessly chase opportunities and make a lasting impact.
Indeed, his impact has been both lasting and profound. Looking ahead, Hari declares, “Our mission at Aura is to create a safer internet, not for corporations but for individuals.” As a father of three, he understands the importance of creating secure online environments for the digital natives of today. Under his guidance, Aura is dedicated to ensuring that everyone, regardless of how tech-savvy they are, can navigate the digital world with peace of mind.
