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Destroy or Encrypt the Data Remotely from Stolen and Lost Computers...as Long as the Bad Guys Don't Get Wise...

Today there were several news reports about a new service "that makes it possible to encrypt or delete data even after a laptop has gone missing."  This sounds great!

Let's read on...

"The new Everdream "Theft Recovery Managed Service" allows organizations to retain control over lost or stolen PCs and laptops, the Fremont, Calif., company said in a statement. The service also can assist law enforcement with the tracking, locating and recovery of computers, the company said.

When a missing PC is connected to the Internet, it automatically contacts Everdream. This triggers encryption or deletion of data on the computer, based on the customer's setting, Everdream said.

At the same time, information on the Internet connection used by the lost computer is stored. This can help locate and recover the PC, Everdream said. The service won't work, however, if the computer's hard disk has been formatted, because the Everdream software resides on the hard disk, an Everdream representative said."

I'm really interested to see what type of configuration possibilities this "service" has available. 

The weakness in this system is, "The service won't work, however, if the computer's hard disk has been formatted, because the Everdream software resides on the hard disk"

Well, of course you can't wish for technology miracles, and technology certainly has its weaknesses.  However, if the bad folks with their hands on stolen or lost computers know about this, it is likely they will first copy all the data, and not the Everdream software, onto a separate storage device and then reformat the hard drive, thus getting all that valuable data.  Of course, if the bad guys don't keep up on this news, they will probably not know to do this, will they?  :)

Sounds like a nice mobile computing device security possibility, though...worth looking into...

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Rebecca Herold's Bio:

Rebecca Herold,CISSP, CIPP, CISM, CISA, FLMI, has been providing information security, privacy and regulatory assistance and services to organizations from a wide range of industries for over 18 years. Rebecca was instrumental in building the information security and privacy program while at Principal Financial Group, which was awarded the CSI Information Security Program of the Year Award in 1998. IT Security ranked Rebecca as one of the top 59 IT security influencers, and Computerworld put Rebecca their list of the 25 top privacy experts and on their list of the 9 best privacy consulting firms. Rebecca has been CPO for two consulting organizations, and has had her own information privacy, security and compliance business since 2004. Rebecca has written chapters for several books, dozens of articles, and has been writing a monthly privacy column for the CSI Alert newsletter since the beginning of 2001, and is working on her 11th book. Some of her other books include The Privacy Papers, Managing an Information Security and Privacy Awareness and Training Program, The Definitive Guide to Security Inside the Perimeter (Realtime Publishers), The Shortcut Guide to Improving IT Service Support through ITIL (Realtime Publishers), and The Practical Guide to HIPAA Privacy and Security Compliance. In addition, Rebecca is the leader of The Realtime IT Compliance Community where she posts to her IT Compliance weblog. You can contact Rebecca at: rebecca_herold@realtimepublishers.net.