USB flash drives are prime sources for data leaks
USB flash drives are everywhere these days. We use them to be more efficient and work on the move. As USB flash drives can contain more and more data (64gb is the biggest as of this writing,)
the chances of having sensitive company information walking out your front door and into the wrong hands are increasing dramatically. Because of their small size, they are easy to
lose or have stolen.
Approximately 22.5 million business travelers pass through London Heathrow’s terminals every year and according to a recent survey by the Ponemon Institute, it is the worst offender for
lost and stolen laptops with up to 4 000 devices going missing each week in Europe’s airports alone.
USB Security
There are many ways of achieving a more secure environment as far as removable media is concerned.- Removal/blocking of USB ports on workstations and laptops
- Complete USB-port control without prejudice
- Encrypting USB flash drives
- USB-port control & USB flash drive encryption
Block of all USB ports
Many large companies decide to remove or use less-than perfect methods of blocking USB ports on computers. This can include inserting a locking mechanism in the USB port which effectively renders the
USB port useless. This is a tedious and very costly process however, and even more tedious to reverse in case a user really needs to use the USB port for something that you actually want to allow.
Another popular solution is to use software in order to block the usage of USB ports. This is often done using the no-prejudice method and thereby blocking all USB devices.
This is a decent solution if you don’t mind angry users who can’t charge their iPods or use the company flash drives like they used to.
- Top Features
- Lock down users’ flash drives and the information if the need should arise. This will be done automatically if the user is removed from Active Directory
- Enforce your own, or pre-set policies defined by laws & regulations.
- Users can use their secured USB drives on any Windows-based computer in the world, without having administrative rights.
- Brute-force protection
- Centralized reporting and inventory of users and their USB flash drives.
USB flash drive encryption
Requiring users to only use encrypted USB flash drives is one way of dealing with a data leak problem. The data is secured and locked away from prying eyes even if the drive is lost or stolen. However,
there is rarely any control over what information is located on which flash drive. It also requires the company to purchase new hardware which already contain encryption which is a very costly
solution.
Cryptzone’s Secured eUSB solution is the premier solution for encrypting an entire USB flash drive and applying centralized policies. With Secured eUSB, you can convert any existing USB drive
into a secured one in just a few minutes. Through policies, you will be able to set what kind of passwords should be used to secure any and all flash drives the users’ might have, and what type
of information shall be allowed to be stored on them.
Secured eUSB with Secured eGuard: Port lock-down and removable media encryption working together
The problem with complete removal or block of USB ports on workstations and laptops is the same as the goal it achieves: Transfer of data with USB becomes impossible.
A more efficient solution is to control the USB ports depending on which device is inserted. This is achieved by enforcing total port control across all of the
company’s workstations and laptops while allowing only white-listed USB removable devices and encrypted USB flash drives that conform with the company’s central policies.
If you close down all of the USB ports for every user, how many calls do you think your Help Desk will receive?
When the user inserts their unsecured USB drive into the
computer, a dialogue box will appear explaining that they are using an unsecured flash drive which is not allowed. The user can then choose to secure the drive and thereby comply with your company policies as
well as any federal laws & regulations that might apply to your business, while maintaining productivity. The result is a productive, mobile & secure staff that require no involvement from
IT staff as it all happens automatically, and does not change the users’ current working routine.
Advanced reporting, auditing and inventory
Federal laws & regulations (such as HIPAA, SOX, GLBA and others) (such as the EU Data Protection Directive) require that electronic
information must be traceable. Usually you can’t achieve the expected level of auditing capability without an expensive and often specialized auditing solution in place - until now.
Cryptzone’s Secured eUSB/eGuard solution incorporates centralized reporting, auditing and inventory capabilities giving corporations the ability to trace data from point A all the way to point Z.
This is also necessary in order to prove beyond any doubt that the data is in fact where it should be. In case a user have several USB flash drives, it’s also possible to track which of them went missing;
in case it can’t be determined in any other way. Up till now that was only possible with often-complicated logging-applications that users themselves had to manage. Today it isn’t managed
at all - it just happens.
- Centrally controlled policies
- USB-port control and lock down
- USB encryption
USB Security
USB-port control and lock down is the functionality which ensures that your data does not leave your company’s walls without you knowing about it.
Centrally controlled policies are small pieces of information that is passed out to the clients and enforces USB-port control and lock down, but also
determines what kind of passwords shall be used to encrypt the USB flash drives, etc.
USB-encryption is the result of the centrally managed policies and ensures data integrity even if the USB drive is lost or stolen.