From The Globe and Mail:

According to the study, IT security breaches – everything from viruses to intellectual property theft to abuse by employees – cost the average Canadian organization $834,149 in 2009, almost double the amount reported in last year’s study. The average number of reported IT security breaches also soared to 11.3 per organization in 2009, compared to three per organization in 2008.

Part of the increase was attributed to smaller IT budgets and the economic downturn.  The increase in reported incidents may also mean that companies are doing a better job of detecting breaches.  Insider threats were the fastest growing catagories.

Data Security, Malware

Version 2.2 of the Kanguru Remote Management Console (KRMC) has a new feature that will make provisioning secure flash drives easier than ever.  Administrators can now import directly from an Active Directory database and program Kanguru flash drives in an automated fashion.  The drives will then be hard-coded with Employee data that can be tracked and logged including Name, Email and Phone Number.

While built-in encryption goes a long way towards securing your USB thumbdrives, KRMC goes a step further by providing control and accountability even after the drives have been distributed to employees.  The logging and auditing features are extremely useful for showing compliance with HIPAA, GLBA, and a wide range of state laws that are popping up across the country.

The full press release is available at the Kanguru News website.

Data Security, Portable Storage

The new interim HIPAA Rules concerning Health IT data security take effect today, Sept 23rd.  The new HIPAA rules cover any unauthorized access or disclosure of “unsecured” PHI (Protected Health Information).

The new rules are intended to ensure patient confidentiality, but there is some controversy over the “harm threshold” provision.

Congress intended for the federal rule to incentivize proactive data protection measures, such as encryption. For example, if the data involved in a breach is rendered unusable by encryption, companies do not have to issue breach notifications, the interim final rule states.

However, privacy groups are dismayed that a provision of the rule would allow Healthcare entities to opt-out of notification requirements under certain circumstances.

Data Security, Government, Healthcare

Kanguru has just released a slim version of the popular QS DVDRW external DVD Burner.  The new Slim QS is compact and draws power from the USB connection - no external power supply!

Kanguru Slim QS DVDRW

Retail price is $59.95.  Available here and here.

Data Backup, Duplication

Due to favorable supply conditions, Kanguru has been able to lower prices on the Bio AES encrypted USB flash drive.  The Bio AES device features a built-in fingerprint sensor for 2-Factor Authentication.

1GB Bio AES  $79.95 $64.95

2GB Bio AES  $99.95 $79.95

4GB Bio AES  $129.95 $99.95

8GB Bio AES  $179.95 $149.95

The Kanguru Bio AES uses 256-bit AES encryption and has received FIPS 140-2 certification from the US Government.

Data Security, Government, Portable Storage

Kanguru is pleased to announce new lower prices on high-capacity Kanguru Defender and Defender Pro hardware-encrypted USB flash drives.

16GB Defender $199.95   $149.95

8GB Defender  $149.95   $119.95

8GB Defender Pro  $179.95   $149.95

4GB Defender Pro  $119.95   $99.95

For information on volume pricing or Government/Non-Profit discounts, please contact your Kanguru reseller.

Data Security, Portable Storage

Today Kanguru launched a new redesigned webpage, www.kanguru.com, and now you can also follow Kanguru on twitter: www.twitter.com/kanguru_news

The twitter feed will feature special product discount codes as well as news and other items.

Uncategorized

The insurance company Darwin has created a nice tool for calculating the cost of a data breach based on the number of records exposed.

Tech 404 - Data Breach Calculator

Using last month’s incident at Naval Hospital Pensacola as an example, a hospital covered by HIPAA that exposes 38,000 records may be looking at a total data breach cost of around $6 Million.  Encryption technology for laptops, thumbdrives and other portable devices seems like a bargain in comparison.

Data Security, Healthcare, Portable Storage

London Evening Standard:  A computer virus crippled a London council for weeks after a worker accidentally plugged an infected memory stick into a computer.  The emergency recovery has cost £501,000 (~ $820,000) thus far.

Lib-Dem councillor Gary Malcolm, who is also an IT specialist, said: “I will be calling for heads to roll. Half a million pounds is a hell of a lot of money to throw away at a time the council says it is strapped for cash. If this had happened in a private company, people would be sacked.”

USB flash drives are a popular vehicle for delivering malware onto computer networks and the threat needs to be taken seriously.  This incident is similar in nature to last week’s mysterious laptops that the FBI is now investigating.

Defender Elite, the next generation secure drive from Kanguru, will feature onboard anti-virus scanning to prevent malware from getting anywhere near your USB ports.

Data Security, Government, Malware, Portable Storage