IronTrex Takes On Cybercrime With AI
After shaping and testing, this patent-pending model is expected to be rolled out to the public in roughly six months
Every smartphone user is a potential target, whether through calls, texts, or links — promising instant rewards. This growing crisis inspired Aakhil Mohammad and his long-time friend Tarun Yalamanchili to build IronTrex, a Hyderabad-based cybersecurity startup.
“Two years ago, Indians collectively lost over Rs 17,000 crores to cyber fraud. Last year, the number went up by 50%. Fraudsters have turned mobile phones into easy targets, and most victims are ordinary, literate citizens,” says Aakhil, CEO of IronTrex and Head of Product Development & Strategy.
Bridging the protection gap
Aakhil, along with Tarun, who leads operations as Director, were joined by four engineers from IIT, IIIT, OU, and Andhra University. They spent six months immersed in research, studying scam patterns, testing models, discarding ineffective approaches, and redesigning for compliance. “Cybersecurity mostly caters to corporations and banks. There’s a huge gap when it comes to protecting everyday users. Even tech-savvy people fall for phishing scams,” Aakhil explains.
How IronTrex works
Designed to be simple for the average smartphone user yet powered by advanced AI in the background, IronTrex detects scam-related keywords such as ‘OTP,’ ‘KYC update,’ and ‘share your password’ across multiple Indian languages, including Hindi, Telugu, and Marathi.
Privacy is central to its architecture. “Our machine only becomes active when a trigger is detected. Processing happens on the device itself, and no data is stored. Even if servers are breached, there’s nothing to steal,” says Aakhil.
The startup has already catalogued 500–600 scam patterns and built a proprietary database of over 1,200 data points, forming the foundation of its patent-pending AI model.
Beyond consumers
For individuals, IronTrex will be available as an affordable paid app, with premium features such as dark web monitoring priced at `79. For banks, NBFCs, and Fintech firms, it functions as a plug-and-play API. “Banks currently spend about $10 per customer on fraud education. With us, it comes down to $3.5,” Aakhil says.
While the app can already be installed on your phones privately, a public Play Store launch is expected within weeks, pending privacy certifications.
Looking ahead
Phase Two will expand into cyber fraud insurance, reimbursing users even if a scam slips through. The start-up plans to grow internationally. Ultimately, the vision is to make the app as essential as an antivirus programme — pre-installed on every smartphone in collaboration with device makers and government bodies.
