The use of USB flash drives has increased within the US Government as a low cost, convenient way to store and transport large amounts of data, Spyrus of San Jose, California said. USB flash drives can get lost or stolen and important, sensitive data can be put at risk in the wrong hands or disclosed to unauthorized persons, the company said. These devices are scarcely protected, merely by a password that is used only to prevent access to the device, and not render the data unreadable to the unauthorized user, it said. Guessing or using tools available on the Internet can easily compromise on these passwords, Spyrus added.
Spyrus, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, is a provider of portable security products and solutions for the information security market. The company’s primary product lines of Lynks Hardware Security Modules, Rosetta smart cards and USB security devices, Hydra Privacy Card Series II encryption and mass storage, Talisman/DS Data Security Suite, and identity management products like Signal Identity Manager and Spyrus PKI, which meet customer needs for high-assurance security, it said.
The SPYRUS Hydra PC provides an on-board hardware engine that encrypts data transferred onto the device ‘on the fly’ and manages authorized access ‘keys’ to the data, Spyrus said. Hardware-based key management is a critical security feature and differentiator from other products claiming to deliver ‘secure’ thumb drives, the company said. The Hydra PC delivers absolute protection within a small commercial device, it said.
A user stores data on the Hydra PC like any other USB flash drive, but with significantly more protection, Spyrus said. The Hydra PC device allows users to securely store unlimited encrypted data on removable, replaceable miniSD cards, securely carry data from PC to PC, and share data with others, the company said. The Hydra PC also provides the controls that restrict access to the data by authorized users and restricts access to data through authorized PCs, it said.
Spyrus’ hardware security implementation gives the user a top level mechanism for protecting their data on a small commercial data storage device, which is critical when addressing Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directive M-06-16. The user can lose the Hydra PC device in the street, and even give away the PIN, but the data is still safe, as it can only be accessed on computers recognized by the device, the company said.
The US Government initiated the DAR Program to meet an OMB memorandum issued in June last year that required agencies to encrypt all sensitive data on mobile devices, Spyrus said. The GSA and OMB intend to issue regulations that make the DAR Program BPAs mandatory sources for agencies of the federal government, the company said.
The DoD issued a policy memorandum in July this year mandating that all data at rest products purchased by DoD components and their supporting commercial contractors be purchased through the DoD ESI, Spyrus said. The Hydra PC is available for sale today through Autonomic Resources, a US Small Business Administration Section 8(a) program participant, under DoD ESI/GSA SmartBUY Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) FA 8771-07-A-0308, the company said.
