UNITED KINGDOM, London, 27th July 2010: BlockMaster, a provider of manageable secure USB flash drives, today announces that its SafeStick drive is the first hardware USB drive to receive a CESG Claims Test Mark (CCTM) certification, which independently ratifies the security functionality of the device, significantly saving time and money on product testing and selection.

The CCTM certification provides a quality kite mark for buyers in the government and private sector and saves organisations valuable time spent testing and assuring buyers that equipment delivers on its promises, critical for USB devices which are designed to protect against data loss, which could result in irreparable brand damage and financial loss.

“In today’s economic climate, no IT department wants to make a rash purchasing decision, forcing many to spend long hours testing that equipment not only meets their needs, but also performs the role which it claims to on the box,” said Anders Pettersson, CSO, BlockMaster. “The CCTM certification checks that SafeStick delivers on its claims, removing any perceived risk of purchasing the device and providing peace-of-mind to public and private sector organisations that all information is protected on the move.”

This accreditation builds on BlockMaster’s existing strength within the public sector. In 2009, it announced several public sector contracts with NHS Practices to supply 180,000 SafeStick devices to NHS staff to better secure data and make patient file transfers easier and safer to manage.

Head of the CCTM Secretariat, Peter Hayes concludes: “BlockMaster’s SafeStick does what it claims to, and we can see how it delivers security and protection of information, providing a layer of trust to buyers across the public sector when handling data below the Restricted

level.

Pettersson continues: “The CCTM kite mark, which many countries compare to Common Criteria EAL1 or EAL2 makes SafeStick and SafeConsole an effortless purchase compared to any other competing product, as buyers automatically know that they can trust the specifications and capabilities of the devices. We are proud to be the first provider of managed secure USB drives to receive this important certification and look forward to the prospect of working with many more public and private bodies.

“It is great news to hear that SafeStick now has CESG accreditation, this should now open up more doors with regards to public sector sales and should appease compliance managers no end,” said James Baker, Senior Sales Manager, Softek.

The CCTM accredited BlockMaster products are already available for purchase and a SafeStick 1GB starts at £38 (RRP).

Read the test report summary on the CESG website »

Policies are left in the drawer to gather dust

Over two-thirds of the agencies in the study had policies in place regarding portable storage security and procedures when transferring records to external parties. 58% had experienced a breach of a agency issued device the past 12 months only half of these featured any security precautions.
The full report can be downloaded here

What has lead to the action from the Privacy Commisioner are concerns after multiple incidents in the UK regarding lack of security for USB storage. The breaches are ranging over the full spectrum of goverment organizations. The UK is well known for having an attitude of publishing and high-lighting breaches, more so than many countries.

Some of the latest high-profile USB breach incidents in UK

UK police lose USB stick with terrorist intelligence data
Council loses data on children on USB key lacking password protection and encryption
Data on 5000 prisoners are lost on unsecure USB flash drive

LONDON, UK, 21th April 2009, - BlockMaster, a provider of secure removable data devices, today announces a two-year exclusive contract to distribute over 100,000 SafeSticks to NHS hospitals across the UK. The SafeSticks will provide complete security for all removable storage through military grade hardware encryption, and will be distributed through seven public sector procurement hubs.

West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust is one of over 100 UK hospitals using SafeSticks to protect portable data. It also installed BlockMaster’s management suite, SafeConsole, to monitor activity on USB sticks six months ago. Other hospitals using the SafeSticks include the George Elliot NHS Hospital Trust in Warwickshire and the Aintree University Hospital NHS Trust.
The SafeSticks which have been installed by Softek, a leading IT Security, Storage and Archiving Solutions distributor, will provide the NHS with complete protection through mandatory password protection and automatic hardware encryption and timer Lockdown functionality which locks SafeStick if there is no user activity for a configurable period of time, preventing data loss if they are lost or stolen. SafeConsole will provide users with full control, remote life-cycle management and device enhancement, with features including remote password recovery, customised password policy, audit for compliance, portable authentication tokens and productivity tools.

Robert Howorth, Senior Technical Architect at West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust, comments: “We were faced with the constant challenge of keeping our data safe, but also ensuring staff can work remotely to increase efficiencies. The security of patient data is of paramount importance to us, so we needed a device that could provide complete protection against theft or loss. We also wanted the peace of mind that devices could be centrally managed, locking down and wiping data should a device become compromised. We have been delighted with SafeConsole and SafeSticks so far as they are simple to use, which increases adoption and provides reassurance that data is protected no matter where it is.”

Daniel Östner, CEO at BlockMaster comments: “The number of unsecure USB sticks lost each year is a problem we cannot sweep under the carpet. We need to be proactive with USB security and not wait for a breach to happen until we think about it.

“It’s fantastic news to see that the NHS is leading the way with USB security. The introduction of best-practice and diligence by organisations will protect sensitive data on portable devices and prevent embarrassing, as well as costly data breaches.”

Mike Bienvenu, Technical Director, Softek concludes, “Critical data loss is on every IT Director’s mind, and with a frightening 66 per cent of all USB sticks being lost or stolen, data stored on memory sticks simply has to be encrypted – the challenge has been achieving this quickly and easily without employee re-training or disruption.”

BlockMaster and Softek are continuing the roll-out of SafeSticks at more NHS hospitals, local government departments, Education establishments and corporates. In addition to this BlockMaster is adding new features to SafeStick and SafeConsole, which will be announced at InfoSecurity Europe 2009.

- ENDS -

About BlockMaster
Since the first release of SafeStick® in early 2004, BlockMaster has the longest successful track record of delivering secure USB Flash Drives in the world.
BlockMaster delivers full management capability for the administrator and a world-class user acceptance experience for the end-user. From rollouts at Fortune Global 2000 customers we know that the implementation of SafeStick® and its systems is swift, cost-efficient and easy on the end-user.
BlockMaster is headed out of Lund, Sweden with additional offices in Stockholm.
SafeStick® is a registered BlockMaster brand. http://www.GetSafeStick.com/

About The West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust
The West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust came into being on April 1st, 1993. It serves an area of approximately 600 square miles which extends to Thetford in the north, Sudbury in the south, Newmarket to the west and Stowmarket to the east. This encompasses a population of approximately 275,000.

The West Suffolk Hospital itself was founded in 1832, moving to its new site in Hardwick Lane in 1973. It was the first of a new design of hospitals to be known as “Best Buy” hospitals. This was the first standard design to combine a compact and economical hospital to meet modern purposes. http://www.wsh.nhs.uk/

About Softek Ltd
Softek is a UK value add distributor (VAD) for IT Security, Archiving and Storage solutions and services.
Softek’s vast technical expertise, and customer service in the field of IT Security is legendary, providing a full range of training and support services to Reseller Partners comprising of ASP/MSP’s, VAR’s, Consultants and System Integrators.
Since inception in 1994, Softek has advocated a comprehensive approach to information security. http://www.softek.co.uk

Press contacts:
Mital Joshi / Kate Mills
Rocket PR
T: +44 (0) 8453-707-024
E: blockmaster@rocketcomms.net