Physically blocks access to date, preventing device compromise.
Cigent® Technology’s Pre-Boot Authentication software is now on the National Security Agency’s Central Security Service (NSA/CSS) components list for the Commercial Solutions for Classified (CSfC) program, enabling adoption by Federal agencies and other organizations seeking the highest data security for classified data at rest stored in laptops, desktops, and other devices to avert compromise.
Introduced in July 2023, Pre-Boot Authentication (PBA) blocks adversaries from accessing data in the event that they get physical access to a PC or storage device.
Cigent PBA brings a new level of security for endpoints containing classified data through hardware-based full drive encryption (FDE) and advanced capabilities that enable Cigent PBA to lock down data ranges on the drive firmware itself, protecting the encrypted data at rest (DAR) from being accessed, cloned, wiped, or viewed, even by disk utilities or other methods.
The CSfC program enables agencies to utilize commercial products in specific configurations to protect classified data. Commercial products must undergo stringent evaluations and be selected for inclusion on the NSA’s approved components List. CSfC certification enables military and government agencies to procure and deploy the technology they need to secure their sensitive endpoint data.
Beyond the CSfC requirements, the Cigent Data Defense™ platform includes additional data security capabilities to protect classified data. These include creating up to 8 hidden drive partitions, complete erasure verification, nefarious insider threat logging, and automated threat response, all built directly into the drive. These capabilities are available from Cigent Ready partners whose secure SSD drives are also on the CSfC components list. As a result, government customers can now take advantage of these unique capabilities.
“The CSfC listing of Cigent’s PBA software is highly valued by our customers, who require CSfC data storage solutions to protect their sensitive information,” said Randal Barber, CEO of CDSG. “The Cigent PBA solution is an integral part of our own CSfC-listed DIGISTOR Citadel C Series secure SSDs that are sought after to prevent unauthorized access to mission-critical and other confidential data.”
“This CSfC approval by NSA/CSS enables government entities to achieve the highest levels of data security, enabling fundamental CSfC requirements and also Zero Trust storage access controls, complete erasure verification, nefarious insider threat detection, and protection against advanced attacks that go undetected by existing endpoint protections,” said Tom Ricoy, Chief Revenue Officer at Cigent. “We are very pleased to receive this certification and enable government entities to fully protect, hide, and destroy classified and sensitive data at the individual storage level.”
Cigent PBA is a key element in the Cigent Data Defense™ platform, which protects data throughout its lifecycle via prevention-based defenses embedded into storage and individual files, methods which the Company notes are highly differentiated from and beyond security solutions now in the market, and which stop ransomware and data theft.
For more information, visit Cigent at https://www.cigent.com/
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