Did you hear the recent news story about how identity thieves don't even need your social security number anymore? By using other information about you with which you haven't been as careful, they can employ formulas to guess your SSN with a frighteningly high success rate. It's just more proof that we need to keep an even tighter grip on personal details. But if you carry a USB flash drive around on your keychain, it probably contains at least some confidential information. That's why you were sure to password-protect it, right? Passwords are good, but they won't stop even a moderately skilled evil-doer.

I recently visited with the owner of a local accounting and financial planning firm who told me about IronKey. He raved about it and told me it allows him the convenience of moving Peachtree backup files between his office and his clients' sites without the fear of security vulnerabilities.

IronKey is a slick device that, if nothing else, will give you a little James Bond cachet. It's a USB drive housed in a rugged waterproof metal case. The technical innards are encased in an epoxy-based potting compound (goo) that makes it tamperproof. It uses military-grade AES hardware encryption to keep files secure, and encryption keys are stored on its "Cryptochip." If the device detects a physical attack, the Cryptochip will self-destruct to destroy the encryption keys (Mission Impossible smoke not included).

 

It includes software for securely managing your passwords and for creating automatic secure backups. It can also run compatible portable software applications and comes with a portable version of Firefox installed. This allows you to use your IronKey at public computers without leaving a trace.

The Enterprise version of IronKey includes online tools for managing password policies, self-destruct sensitivity, and user audit trails. And here's the really cool part: if a former employee or someone else with a valid password has access to one of your IronKeys, you can remotely deny access, delete files, and even destroy the device.

You'll pay a premium for all this security. A 4GB model of the personal version goes for $149, or about $130 more than you'd pay for a standard 4GB drive. Of course, like any insurance, that could turn out to be money very well spent.

   

Image credit: IronKey.com