Leadership
Ashwameth Ravilla
Founder & Principal Advisor, DARS LLC · DMV Region
Every DARS engagement is led by a senior practitioner — not delegated to junior staff, not rotated between consultants.
The Advisory Foundation
Three Disciplines. One Engagement.
Most cybersecurity advisory firms draw from a single discipline. DARS is built on the intersection of technical, legal, and GRC expertise — applied within a single engagement by the same advisor.
Technical Foundation
B.Tech in Information Technology. Security advisory grounded in how systems are architected and where controls fail — not policy review conducted at a distance from the technology.
Legal & Regulatory Grounding
LLM in International Information Technology Law. Regulations interpreted in context — why they exist, how they interact, and what they actually require in practice.
Global GRC & Audit Experience
Close to two decades leading IT security audit and governance programs across healthcare, banking, telecom, and government contracting in the USA, UK, UAE, and India.
Experience
Where the Expertise Comes From
Close to two decades of in-seat experience across regulated industries on three continents — IT audit leadership at MedStar Health, GRC consulting through Deloitte, technology risk advisory at Cubic Transportation Systems, and earlier roles at Emirates NBD in Dubai and Vodafone in the United Kingdom. Having operated within these environments as the person accountable for the program — not as an outside observer — is what distinguishes the advisory DARS provides.
USA · United Kingdom · United Arab Emirates · India
The Rationale
Why DARS Was Founded
Organizations with 1–100 employees were either paying for Big 4 engagements sized for enterprises they are not, or accepting managed service provider support that does not address governance, compliance, or strategic risk. Healthcare providers, nonprofits, small businesses pursuing compliance certifications, government contractors navigating CMMC — each carries real regulatory exposure, and none has a security program calibrated to it.
DARS — Digital Assurance & Resilience Services was established to close that gap — delivering the calibre of advisory larger organizations receive, structured for the operating realities of smaller ones, with full transparency on scope and cost.
Engagement Structure
How DARS Operates
The questions procurement teams, CFOs, and general counsel ask before engaging an advisory firm — answered directly.
● Written Engagement Agreement
Every engagement operates under a signed statement of work with defined scope, deliverables, and timeline. No handshake agreements, no open-ended retainers without documented expectations.
● Named Principal on Every Engagement
The advisor on your first call leads the engagement through to completion. Work is not delegated to junior staff or rotated between consultants.
● Professional Liability Coverage
DARS maintains professional liability (E&O) insurance. Certificate of coverage available on request during procurement or vendor onboarding review.
● Confidentiality by Default
All engagements operate under mutual NDA. A Data Processing Agreement is available for engagements involving personal data under HIPAA, MODPA, or GDPR.
Credentials & Education
LLM in International Information Technology Law, Robert Gordon University, Scotland · B.Tech in Information Technology, Anna University, India
All certifications held individually by the principal advisor. Credentials current and actively maintained. CMMC Registered Practitioner, Cyber AB — CPN 72949.
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