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he need to control entry and exit of data via USB sticks and other devices
You have invested in network anti-virus software,
firewalls, email and web content security. Yet any user can come into the
office, plug in a USB stick the size of the average keychain and take in/out 1GB
of data. This poses a tremendous threat: Users can take confidential data or
they can introduce viruses, Trojans, illegal software and more – actions that
can affect your network and company severely. Yet, as an administrator you have
no way to control this! Group policy offers no control.
Technology analyst Gartner warns that portable
devices containing a USB or FireWire connection are a serious new threat to
businesses. In a July 2004 report, Gartner named removable media devices as a
significant security risk in the workplace and advised that these can be used
both to download confidential data, and also to introduce a virus into the
company network. Gartner’s report listed pocket-sized hard drives that connect
using FireWire or USB hard drive or keychain drive, disk-based MP3 players such
as the iPod, and digital cameras with smart media cards, memory sticks, compact
flash and other memory media as potential security threats.
- Plug in a USB stick
- Connect a smartphone, MP3 player, handheld
- Download/upload data to a digital camera
- Access CDs
- Access floppies
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How it works
To control access, GFI LANguard P.S.C. installs a small
footprint agent on the machine. This agent is only 1.2MB in size
– the user will never know it is there. GFI LANguard P.S.C.
includes a remote deployment tool, allowing you to deploy the
agent to hundreds of machines with just a few clicks. After
installation, the agent queries Active Directory when the user
logs on and sets permissions to removable storage accordingly.
If the user is not a member of a group that allows him/her
access, then access to the device/CD/floppy is blocked.
Controls access to all types USB sticks, SD cards (digital
cameras) and more
USB sticks are one of the main threats as they are small,
easily hidden and can store up to 1GB of data. GFI LANguard
P.S.C. recognizes all USB sticks. In addition, it can control
access to any device that can be mounted as a hard disk (whether
accessed via USB, FireWire, etc.). For example, plugging a
digital camera into a USB port gives users access to storage on
an SD card; SD cards are available in several sizes including
512MB and over.
Controls access to CDs and floppies
You can centrally disable users from reading or writing data
to/from a CD or floppy. This way, you can block normal users
from bringing in data that could be harmful to your network,
such as viruses, Trojans and other malware. Although you can
switch off CD and/or floppy access from the BIOS, in reality
this solution is impractical: You would have to physically visit
the machine to temporarily switch off protection and install
software. In addition, advanced users can hack the BIOS.
Easily configure users who can have access via Active
Directory
To grant a user access to any one or all three types of
devices, simply make that user a member of pre-defined Active
Directory groups for each of the three kinds of devices. You can
also leverage the power of groups and make an entire department
a member of the group. Other storage control software requires
cumbersome per-machine administration, forcing you to make the
changes on a per-machine basis and update the configuration on
each machine before the settings can take effect. Configuration
of GFI LANguard P.S.C. is effortless and leverages the power of
Active Directory.
Includes remote deployment tool
The GFI LANguard P.S.C. remote deployment tool can deploy
the agent network-wide in minutes. You can configure to deploy
domain-wide, per computer or to a list of computers.
Centralized control facilitates temporary access
Because you can easily add/remove a user to a group in
Active Directory, it is simple to grant temporary access to a
removable media, floppy or CD. Temporary access may be
occasionally required, but should not mean that you cannot
control access the rest of the time.
| System requirements |
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Server/clients
which are to be monitored must be running
Windows 2000/2003 or XP. |
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It
is recommended that users do not have
administrative rights on their local machine, to
avoid tampering with the process (by killing it
from Task Manager). |
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Click on the thumbnails to see full size picture.
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Configure which Active Directory
groups are allowed or denied access |
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Easy network-wide deployment of
agents |
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| Deployment options |
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Configure which devices you wish
to control |
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Automatic creation of appropriate
Active Directory groups |
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IOMEGA Zip Drive: This portable
external device allows you to save your large files that will not fit on a floppy disk to
this media. Standard media size is 250, however you can purchase a larger
format. The price is great right now for a 250meg zip drive. You can purchase
this USB 2.0 component for about $99. The zip disks are a little more pricer.
A five pack sells for about $50. bucks, however the portability and the convenience is
great. You can load this device on any computer that has a USB port, simply install
the software and away you go. For more information visit their web site at: www.iomega.com .
Reading PEN: The reading pen II from
Wizcom Technologies Inc. is a portable assistive reading tool that helps students who have
difficulty recognizing or understanding words aloud via its text-to-speech
technology. This reading pen is ideal for ESL students, as well as students with
learning disabiities and reading difficulties. It is also useful for educators whjo
enjoy having an English dictionary immediately accessible. For information see
website at: www.wizcomtech.com .
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