Storage performance specs are so last millenium
Going by today’s headlines, storage vendors should add a new spec to their data sheets: hackability.
Case in point: yet another theft of reams of customer data, this time in the UK. Tapes left in a car.
Wired Magazine’s Fetish spread features the Maxtor BlackArmor drive from Seagate. This is a new kind of extreme storage device. It’s virtually unhackackable, offering AES encryption encased within the hard drive itself. So if it gets stolen or lost (does it matter which?), you can sleep secure in the fact that someone else may have your drive, but they don’t have your data.
It’s got a high “eye candy” factor, too – so you can be safe AND cool.
Update: CDW is taking orders for BlackArmor now.
Hmm … anything that’s reported to be unhackable usually screams “Hack Me!!!” to everyone with extra time and a knowledge of digital cryptology. AES is a great algorithm but, like everything else, it can be cracked with the right tools.
Perhaps Maxtor could set up a BOINC project to see just how many PetaFlops are required to crack their encryption through brute force or side channel attacks ….
Great idea Jason! I fed this back to the BlackArmor team at Seagate.
[…] School” bank vaults and security guards for data is encryption. Seagate’s Maxtor BlackArmor drives are better than a loaded gun in keep thieves out of your stuff. Without the password, NO […]
[…] the trade-off between tinkerable boxes like this and a ready-to-use storage product like Seagate’s BlackArmor. Just like home construction projects, the last 10% of “finish” can really make a […]
[…] School” bank vaults and security guards for data is encryption. Seagate’s Maxtor BlackArmor drives are better than a loaded gun in keep thieves out of your stuff. Without the password, NO […]