Security officials are issuing USB flash drives to workers in the state of Washington's Division of Child Support as part of a new security procedure established to eliminate the use of non-approved thumb drives by workers collecting and transporting confidential data.
USB flash drives are very small, very portable, very convenient -- and very easy to lose. In fact, the question to ask these days isn't how to avoid losing your flash drive, but how to make sure your data is safe when you do. As a result, Computerworld decided it was time to look at seven USB flash drives that are outfitted with security features to keep your data safe.
Mobile computing, from laptops to the myriad handheld devices such as smartphones, BlackBerries, iPhones, USB tokens and PDAs, can certainly be regarded as a weak spot in terms of security, says Jonathan Gossels, analyst at consultancy SystemExperts
IBM's research division in Switzerland is working on a device that IBM scientists call "security on a stick" - a small USB device that plugs into any computer to establish a secure channel to a bank's online transaction server.
* Dr. Internet columnist Steve Blass offers advice on using a USB wireless adapter to solve connection woe
* Help Desk columnist Ron Nutter offers advice on protecting DNS servers from hackers
USB 2.0 is the most popular connection technology for external devices, with FireWire (either 400 or 800) a close second. However, if you really want extreme speed, eSATA is the way to go, as Seagate Technologies' new FreeAgent XTreme drive proves.
In the connected world that is 2009, almost every company has a trade secret that it wants to keep. Between BlackBerrys, home e-mail accounts, and USB ports that can write gigs of data to a flash drive, it's only getting harder to protect your trade secrets. If you aren't careful, your trade secrets can walk right out the door--and without a well-written contract, you may have little legal recourse.
Two video connectors can be found on nearly every PC, monitor or graphics card in use today. Developed 21 years ago by IBM , the analog VGA (Video Graphics Array) clings on, despite the rise of the (DVI) Digital Visual Interface, which is tailored for LCD displays.
My company provides employees with laptops and handheld devices to promote an efficient work environment. I've also seen employees listening to iPods or carrying keychain USB memory sticks around the office. With so many ways for data to escape the network, how can I ensure that all points are protected from users literally walking out the door with data that doesn't belong to them?
One beef against Microsoft's Surface devices is that they have less usable disk space than the advertised disk size would indicate, but there is a relatively easy way to free up as much 7GB of disk space: Create a USB recovery drive and delete the Windows 8 recovery partition from the hard drive.
* Dr. Internet columnist Steve Blass discusses how to transfer Mac OS X external USB drive to Windows machine
* Help Desk columnist Ron Nutter discusses how to set up a wireless network without an Internet connection
How carriers handle excess real-time traffic in their MPLS VPN nets; Administering Active Directory from a workstation; Microsoft looks for ways to combat Blue Pill, code-signing bypass; Updating CAN SPAM; Vista testers fuming as beta judged lacking; Linux event shows move to mainstream; Cool Tools” item, “USB flash drives evolve into application powerhouses
I noticed a trend in the reader response e-mails to an earlier newsletter sampling various Linux distributions that can boot up from a USB keychain. Here are some of the comments I received:
Buffalo Technology's latest addition to its line of USB storage devices is the MiniStation TurboUSB HD-PS series. We tested the 500GB version (HD-PS500U2). This pocket-size drive (only slightly bigger than a KitKat candy bar) supports Windows and Mac OS X, as well as USB 2.0 and 1.1 standards. Its wraparound USB cord fits into grooves on the drive enclosure's perimeter -- a nice touch.
Have you ever had to use someone else's PC at work - either to complete a quick task, or as a substitute machine for a short period of time? The experience is never pleasant - foreign desktop settings, grimy keyboards, crazy font sizes and odd wallpaper - it's liken to borrowing someone's swim trunks. If you're a Linux desktop user and are forced to use someone's Windows machine, the experience may be more on par with borrowing a toothbrush.
Desktop management vendor ScriptLogic is expected next week to add controls for securing USB and other ports on desktop computers so administrators can better protect the collection and dissemination of corporate data.
Enterprise security executives need to make practices such as safe USB use and discreet handling of patient or customer data as commonplace as not accepting luggage from strangers in airports or wearing a seat belt when driving.
NEW ORLEANS - Linux kernel developer Sarah Sharp is searching for a solution to the problem posed by vampire mice, she said in a presentation at LinuxCon North America Wednesday afternoon.
Last time, we discussed the Personal Phone Gateway from CuPhone. Although PPG is a "premiere" product for CuPhone, the company has a candidate for what may be a cool product of the year. The other product is a USB-to-RJ-11 phone converter. It's optimized for working with Skype, and here's the story.
They put 4Gb USB sticks (properly marked and in manufacturers' packaging) all over the parking lot. Employees picked up the sticks and some went straight to their computers and inserted them to see if they worked. Unknown to the employees, the USB had a boot program that installed a piece of software.
With the Browser Appliance VM just under 220M bytes and the VMware Player under 20M bytes, this could be an interesting opportunity to use a USB thumb drive to create an ultra-private browsing environment.