239- Eli Farhood's Experience and the Evolution of Identity Protection

I only talked about like the consumer ABC level . Don't create obvious passwords like welcome one , two , three . Can you get a piece of safe , like something as basic as that ? What I talk about here is something much more advanced .

It's definitely something better than just a lazy welcome one , two , three password that all the hackers will love because they want to get into your stuff , take your data , get money or humiliate you Whatever . You don't want them . You don't want them in your personal space , okay . But he's going to talk about something much more revolutionary than that .

I don't got much of a monologue . All right , let's introduce two of the guests of this episode . Evolutionary than that . I don't got much of a monologue . Alright , let's introduce two of the guests of this episode . He goes by many variants of this name , but for simplicity's sake we're just going to call him Eli Farhood .

Feel free to correct me if I got that wrong .

And the second time was just last year , in 23 , where I had thousands of dollars on my cards in front , and you know , when I fell victim , I thought , you know , I was just a lone person who had been victimized or just taken advantage of , and I realized after looking and researching that actually hundreds of millions of people globally fall in front .

Actually hundreds of millions of people globally follow the product , and it's really not like they're not guilty for falling victim .

At the end of the day , there are data breaches that are happening more than often right now , and these data breaches are providing our personal information , our sensitive data , social security numbers , to pretty much everyone , you know , and hackers are using those data breaches as a great vehicle to hack our accounts and our devices .

So they're taking advantage , you know , and abusing that data very , very well . And so what's the outcome ? The outcome is that you can get identity fraud . You can get unauthorized transactions on your credit card . You can get what they call a takeover of your checking account . You can get as miserable as going to court and prove your innocence .

That's how bad it can get , and when it gets to that moment , the problem lies here is that you become a blacklisted person . You become someone who no one wants to engage with business-wise . Someone wants to do business with you because you know you had identity theft and you're a customer .

So try to borrow money or get a loan to buy a car or even rent a house . That can become a real struggle and so , based on all these things that I just mentioned and I was really , you know identity became very personal to me . I was like , okay , this is too much . It's just crazy what's going on .

We make it very easy to do business in this country , but at the end of the day , there's a trade-off , and the trade-off is that anyone who has your information or if they don't have all the information , they can really go to the software and collect the puzzle . What's needed .

Let's say , I have your first name , last name , I have your address , but I don't have your social security number . That's not very hard . I can just jump into the website , the website on the doc web , buy some data or look it up right , and I can collect that puzzle again , have full identity information and it just takes a phone call to your bank .

If I know you back with Chase , for example I just call that bank and provide that information and maybe they'll believe me and I can claim your identity and provide access to your checking account . That's one way to do it . The other way is that they don't really sometimes want to steal money from your account .

Sometimes they just want to use your name for illicit activities . We call that in cybersecurity money and not just money . There are many , many ways to do illicit activities . The biggest part of it is money and the problem lies there is that if you fall I mean if they fall while conducting that illicit activity they are not caught .

Your name is caught and this is howicit activity . They are not caught , your name is and this is how really it becomes very interesting . That's why I always like hear people saying I'm not a trillionaire who cares about my information , like I don't have anything in my bank account , I'm broke .

But it's really not about that it's not about how much money you have . Sometimes they don't want to take money through it . Sometimes you just want to use your name as a label . You can do whatever you want to do , and that is the problem that we're faced with . That's the problem I was faced with .

I'm someone who got my information and used it , used it and pulled my back and played my identity . That was just a wake-up .

So they're using your information as a shield not to be held account by the law or anything like that . You're going to be held account . I know that sounds weird . You know you didn't do it . Sadly , that's not good enough . You have to debunk that and that's not easy because , just like you've been a victim twice , I've been a victim twice .

One was last month when someone tried to steal $3,000 out of my account just to buy cryptocurrency , and if I didn't prevent that in time , if I didn't have that quick thinking , this guy would have gone away with $3,000 . There was nothing the banks could have done about it if I didn't take quick action .

Once you put it in there , such as cryptocurrency , that's it . There's nothing the banks could do . There's nothing I could do , and you know it was like a two-hour battle , but I'm not going to make this about me too much time . Even if you change passwords and all that , that's not even enough .

And to your point , massive data breaches are happening a lot more often . Almost every single I think every single Social Security has been exposed .

And if you want to come in here and troll , it's getting much worse . And , by the way , your bio . It doesn't matter how cautious you are , you will get caught .

The problem is that it's really there's not much you can do and even if you put a strong password , even if you use multi-factor authentication , there's this issue like , once your device is centralized , like the person who put the door to this device , they really can't bypass any security software , from Face ID to two-factor authentication , to Google authentication , to

whatever authentication you're using , they can access your private key , if you have them on your device . They can access your password , they can access your business data on the device . That is the real problem . When we started thinking of a solution , we were faced with two realities .

First reality is that no one has been able to this state for 100 years to today , since the digital revolution , no one has been able to protect information .

When you hear about Microsoft , which is a trillion dollar company , being compromised , their customers being compromised , their customers being compromised , their data being stolen , if Microsoft can't protect itself and others you know I'm not just pointing to Microsoft , at&t just recently as well so if those multinational companies can't protect themselves , then who can

protect me ? Right , and this is where the problem really

lies . We were faced with that reality that you can't protect information and the only solution we thought of is to authorize who can use your information . We're kind of like giving you back control over your data . You decide who can use it , you decide when they can use it , why they're using it and from where they're using it . It's as simple as that .

That was our basic solution before even developing any technology , any product . That was the strategic choice we've taken . Okay , there's a lot of data breaches , a lot of abundance of information .

The only way that could work , in our view , if you're still using that system that we currently have , is to authorize who can use that information every time you need it .

And that's why that was like the genesis , if you want , of the Catch ID product that we created , where you just use your hand to authorize who can use your information on any smart device , not just your device , and that's really cool because you know you have access to accounts anywhere yeah , I mean me , I do have a .

And this is just a big one , right , because it's by the hand what if a crazy family member I'm just going to use a brother ? Knock the brother out , use that brother , the one that has access to all the information . Will that work ? Will it detect that that person's unconscious and it will deny access ? Or will it go through ?

He lifts my hand up and will he be able to breach ? That's much rarer because people are more digital these days . Will he be able to breach Just because he physically knocked me down ?

So yeah , we created a solution for that where you can set up a secret gesture that no one knows of , just yourself , and when you do that gesture , we actually can send all your information to the 911 , your location , your information if you need help , and you know they will come to help you as soon as they can .

This is one way we can do it to eliminate at least the incentive for that person to do bad things .

So , yeah , that's a pretty good ultimate .

Looking around , if you check all the biometric systems that are really robots in our view they all depend on a specialized device to operate . You know , like here at the airport or Face ID , all you see is that hardware on your iPhone would work right . Amazon at the Whole Foods same thing .

Hardware is that convenience disappears , and so we wanted to create a product where you are accessing your accounts from any device . It can be your friend's device , and that's your point . It's not device dependent . It's really agnostic to any device , and so you can use your brother's phone if you want to log into email .

Sure , that's because you're using your hand , not your brother's hand , and so we're looking here . There's a link between your identity and versus today , they're pretty much linking your identity to the device , and that's also part of the core problem . Part of the core problem is that when the device is compromised , you're kind of doomed .

But once they got all your device information , you think you need to get a new phone . I'm not even sure that's even going to be enough , because a lot of that same information is going to come with you , right , just except for that device manufacturing number or serial number , wherever the heck it is .

I don't want to sound too technical because I don't want to drive away the non-tech nerd audience .

So compromised devices are very common , actually More than people think , and they think like as long as my phone is working , then while it's working , it's all good . Actually , no , it could be compromised and those hackers can be , you know , scanning for that data every day you use your phone .

They could be downloading that information that you're doing on your phone every day as well and one day , you know , once they can catch something on you , they could start to intimidate you and perhaps extort you . Like ask you hey , you know , and they will send you a file .

Hey , well , actually you know we have a file about you that you're going to do this business . We can actually send this to your competitor . I actually had a story about this happening last year where one business guy was compromised without knowing when they were able to collect all the information they needed , they started threatening them .

Unless he sends them money , they will share that information . That's just an idea of how it can happen .

We can't be living in fantastical Disneyland . We need to wake up , sell a coffee , deal with reality . I know it's not easy , but I prefer the harsh truth than the beautiful falsehood , because at least there's a painful yes , but it's needed . You know , if I wanted to live , if I want to be in La La Land , you know I would never talk to Eli .

I don't know , he's too negative , he's too paranoid . Who cares ? But no , no , no , this is for adults only , and hope you're adult-minded too . There's so many adults out there that act like children . Wake up , wake up , wake up . This is not to scare you , this is to empower you or even offer a product that can solve it .

You know , I'm open to new ideas , because the security is too device-centered , right , and that's the big problem , and I'm not going to argue with that , because back in the slightly older days it was more computer centered . Ever since these smartphones , the main emphasis has been shifted over there .

Okay , so that's all I'm going to say about that and anything else you want to add , before I start panicking them even more with AI threats .

And we're only able to do that by replacing your credentials with your hands . So , basically , your phone or your hand becomes your password . That's our concept . Why we're doing that is because no one can see your credentials with your hands . So , basically , your phone or your hand becomes your password . That's our concept .

Why we're doing that is because no one can see your hand , but someone can see your password . So let's just eliminate credentials for our lives . Eliminate pain of stupefaction , authentication which obviously doesn't work . Here's a very quick example on how it made my nights miserable .

Yesterday I tried to sign in to TikTok and they gave me literally a 30-second window to provide the code so that I can sign in on another device Actually , my other device , not another device and you know they're sending the code by email . Sometimes emails take longer than 30 seconds to reach out and I couldn't get that code .

I was literally locked out of my guns for trying more than five times to send it . It's just insane . Like an authentic authentication is . It's just should be something of that .

It's so so much hassle , um , and I think this is part of the reason why security doesn't work , because we're asking everyone to use very complicated tools to secure their identity , and that's the problem .

You know , people want something easy and they don't want to deal with complicated codes here and codes there and passwords and strong passwords and use a capital letter , use a dollar sign oh my God , this is just becoming crazy . And password managers like I heard about .

Okay , password managers are a world at pain , but password managers sometimes can be dysfunctional and they can be compromised , so hackers have access to all your passwords . I mean , just think about that . Our approach is that easy . Security is the only security that works .

People are not willing in their day and age to deal with complicated security and that's why we're still using passwords . That's why Face ID , for example , doesn't replace passwords , right , because I get this question a lot why Face ID doesn't do what you do ?

Well , because Face ID is only available on a device that has the password for Face ID and they cannot eliminate credentials , otherwise you can only log in from that device . So good luck for you . That's why they have to be enabling those credentials to work elsewhere , on any other device .

And so this is where the problem lies Unless you eliminate those credentials , unless you eliminate what hackers are trying to steal , you haven't really done much , and that's why we decided to eliminate credentials and replace them with just your hand , your palm , and use that as a password .

No one can see it and no one can take it away from you , and you will never forget . You know People struggle with resetting passwords . Sometimes it's just . It's just killing me right and managing that . If you work at an enterprise , you have to change your password every three months . Think about that and manage your password . It's just too much .

Even some of the sharp minds that's great with memory and typing passwords will have a hard time . And once you're locked out , oh yeah , those codes , those digit codes or whatever they do with this .

Sometimes it's a combination of letter or numbers , it's a photo , whatever , yeah , but the fact that TikTok is 30 seconds and sometimes a slow email could take five , you're already locked out . A lot of them are more like one , some was like 30 seconds , a few was like a minute , but once the email comes in , like five minutes later , you're already locked out .

I mean , for me , getting to the Facebook facebook , it was actually the hardest thing , but I managed to crack that one . Oh , my goodness , spending two hours trying to figure that out very , very , very frustrating , very , very annoying . And I would consider myself to be somewhat tech I'm savvy person what the heck ? Yeah , you're blocking out the bad people .

So they can check our website . There's an invest button there . If they click on it , it takes us to our crowdfunding page .

So we're very excited about this moment where we share our profits and share our growth with everyone else so that they can get a cash ID for free , just by investing with us as little as 100 , not because it's a large amount , but it's because they voted yes , I want to use cash . Yes , I want to get rid of passwords .

Yes , I don't want to use two-factor authentication , which is very fast . I want freedom and access on any device and I want security at work , and so we really are inviting people to check our website , check our funding page and , if they really know the product , please back us .

We're very happy to have you on board as an investor and growing with us as well , because the future is very bright .

I do a lot of eye scanning and it gets annoying to see all that got together , Nice and separated . You'll see it right there . Always share the guest website and the product because look , they're here . You know they want to spread value and promote the product .

Okay , me , I'm open and I'm fine with that because I want to provide value to people with options and solutions . Okay , that's and solutions . That's all I'm going to say about that . Check in the description .

If you're tired of me just yapping and yapping and scrolling through , You're going to see it on YouTube , You're going to see it on Buzzsprout or even the website . It's going to be there . You should be able to click . It's as simple as a click . I don't talk bad enough about AI . I think I'm becoming a little too positive .

You're going to help me balance that out . What are the emerging threats of AI regarding this innovative security tool ?

They're recreating emails that look like professional emails . They're trying to interfere when you visit the website .

They kind of mask it so that when you put your password , they grab it Like they're using AI very , very well and from now on , phishing will be more efficient for them and you know the fact that they can automate that and just do it on a mass scale . I think more people will fall to fraud and the market is already growing a lot .

Fraud is just insanely growing at 17% every year . So it's already a big market . It's going to be gigantic by 2030 . So we think AI is a real problem and we're actually building our technology to fend off that threat .

We want to make sure that , no matter what happens to your information , no matter what happens to your biometric too because you know your biometric can be stolen Someone can snap a picture of your image . I predict that . So we created our technology to protect against that being threatened .

Yeah , yeah , I mean , you know that was brief , that was very profound , because ai on me , so much , you know , and yeah , they go on and may well take it passwords , yeah , and yeah , they can automate what taking passwords . Yeah , phishing , yeah , forget it .

They can phish like a million in one click instead of like , oh , let me get this guy , this guy , this guy , this girl , nope , automate that , find these susceptible targets and put it right there . I think you have to have some kind of you're going to need some kind of detectable AI that you'll know is coming from AI , something like that .

I mean , I'm an expert , but I'm sure there's ready tools that can detect that . Oh , this was generated by AI , this is AI . I mean , I talked about using it for school papers , but we try to bring this to cybersecurity .

We try to bring this to cybersecurity , something that you know this could be useful to detect and catch bad actors using AI just to steal with great automation in such a massive scale . So you know that was brief , but I think that covers a heck of a lot . So that's all I'm going to say about that . Anything else you want to add before I wrap this up ?

By the end of the day , when you fall , when you become a victim , when you have thousands of frauds , when the investigation of that fraud puts you at guilt and you feel hopeless and lonely , this is where you know those threats were real and so don't take it lightly .

Identity fraud is such a serious risk to your life , to your financial life , to your well-being . There's a lot of emotional and mental problems that you have to deal with . Once you figure out and I've been through this so I know exactly what it is it's when you're not safe , no matter how harsh it's trying to be .

Okay , that's one of your solutions because , listen , the breaches are just getting more massive . It's happening , okay . And the dark web ? Once you start to navigate through the dark web , they get your information very simple . I've seen videos of this . It it's scary , okay . So don't look at it as , oh , I got to behave or something . No , join the revolution .

Join the revolution . That's the only way real change is going to happen . Or you can just put up with this device-oriented security and get robbed is going to happen . Or you just put up with this device oriented security and get robbed knowingly and , most importantly , unknowingly . Okay . So that's what I'm going to say about that .

I wish I could end that in a more happier note , but this is more of a . This is like the darkest AI episode yet and I got to bounce . I think I was becoming a little too positive . So thank you for bringing me bringing some balance to this podcast , because I want to keep it nuanced .

So we definitely have to bring the darkness into this part of the podcast . So I was afraid I was becoming too light , I was getting too light hearted with it . So I thank you for that . Normally not a light hearted person , I mean , I see pros and cons of trying to be Russian , but you know you can blame them why it's so dark .

But hey , it's better for you to know your demons , know your problems than just , I don't know , putting your head in the sand . Know your demons , know your problem , then just put your head in the sand .

You don't need to have your wallet , you don't need to have even your credit card . Your biometric can just make a purchase anywhere . It's as simple as that . The future is very bright . We just need to act and back technologies , not just cash . Any technology you can back today that has the potential to bring that future to Russia and help us be free .

We don't want to be connected to devices . We're humans and we want our identity to be connected to our body , our biometric , and we are supposed to control who can use our information . That's our solution and we hope other technological companies , other technology companies follow suit and maybe they're going to be competitors .

We're very happy with that because we want to find a solution

. Like I said , identity was very personal for me and I wish I didn't do that . To be honest , I was having a very good job , well-paid job , but when it happened to me twice , I decided to do this and I had to compromise a lot to do this . Just leaving your stable job and starting a business is not a joke .

It's a serious challenge , and I took that challenge because I just wanted to find a solution . And so , with someone else , let's flip this way . But I'm also happy that I'm wanted to find a solution , and so , with someone else , let's flip this way . But I'm also happy that I'm able to contribute to a solution . So , yeah , no , the future is very bright .

There's no dark anything here . The current situation is somehow dark , yeah , I agree , but the future is bright and technology is , in my view , the gateway to reinvent the future , and that okay , I'm not adding any more because I'll make it darker , so I'm just gonna be quiet , be wise .