There are literally hundreds of thousands of USB memory devices to choose from. The market is saturated with a range of products from novelty ones to water-resistant ones. They are very useful little objects and it’s hard to imagine our world without them. They make life and work easier in a number of ways. You can fit entire warehouses full of data onto a pocket size device that weighs no more than 30g. In the ten or so years that they have been around, flash drives have come a long wayand today you can get devices with hundreds of gigabytes storage memory, that are no bigger than a stick of chewing gum. And they aren’t even expensive.
Whilst USB flash drives have no doubt made life easier, especially in the business world, this isn’t withoutsome downsides. Between December 2010 and January 2011 no less than 17,000 USB devices were left at laundry shops in the UK alone. Combine this figure with the number of devices that get left in foreign machines, lost whilst on the move and stolen and you’re looking at a very big number of lost devices. If it’s a personal device it’s not really a problem – it’s annoying and you might have lost your history essay or pictures from your recent holiday. However if it’s a device containing work related media then it can become serious. Not only will you be in trouble with your boss, but you may have to re-do the lost work. Since the popularization of USB devices there have been a number of high profile examples of lost devices, containing sensitive or valuable data.
Implications of Lost Data
There are many implications of losing USB devices containing important information. The consequences depend entirely on the nature of the lost data and the nature of the work you do. In the UK the Data Protection Act dictates that if you handle someone’s personal information you have a legal obligation to protect this data. Failure to do so can result in hefty penalties and fines. US law lacks a direct equivalent of this legislation but a number of other laws and self-regulation rules make up for this. The steady rise of companies using a Bring Your Own Device policy, in which employees use their own technology at work, has put even more pressure on mobile data security.
Keeping your Data Safe
Think; if this was printed onto paper, would I happily leave it lying around for strangers to read. If not then you need to use secure USB devices. There are thousands of secure devices out there, offering different levels of protection. If you want complete peace of mind you need to invest in a proper one, not a cheap one that has a weak encryption function and nothing else.
Features of a Truly Secure USB Device
If you want to take data loss prevention seriously, you need to start using secure devices. A truly secure USB device will have a combination of, or all of, the following features;
Secure Access – This is the most fundamental feature of any secure USB. A majority of people won’t be able to get access to your data if the device is properly encrypted.
Remote Data Delete – The ability to wipe the data from the memory stick is key to protecting your data. This level of security is only necessary if the data on your device is highly sensitive.
Cloud Based Management – Only a few USB sticks offer this function but it’s a real game changer. Being able to manage your data from any internet enabled device takes all the risk out of losing a stick or having one stolen.
Location Authorisation Function –A few devices offer the ability to create pre-defined geographic zones in which the data stored on the stick is available. Outside these zones the data cannot be accessed. For example, the device may work in your office but outside the area the data cannot be accessed. This is a very advanced feature that only a handful of secure USB devices offer.
GPS Tracking – This feature isn’t crucial to the security of your device, but it is a great addition. What better way to protect your data than to know where it is, at all times?
Internal Battery – Many of the more advance features mentioned above, require an internal battery. It’s a good indicator of a robust device that carries the best security features.
About Author;
Norman owns a specialist secure USB company offering products aimed at large private companies, the public sector and those using a Bring Your Own Device policyat work. (Which sees employees use their personal technology in the workplace)
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