Project Description

Shield Systems

Since mobile storage devices were popular used to carry data or files from here to there, it had bought a very serious problem: how to protect data or files from being copied or even stolen from the data center of a company, a bank or any sensitive government departments ?
Some companies forbidden its employees to use USB flash disks in order to avoid data leakage. But, is this a right way?
SageMicro’s shield system was developed originally to solve this issue by the company’s unique controller ICs with embedded hardware modules for encryption & decryption algorithms. It consists of three parts:

  • Mobile storage devices, for example, USB flash device
  • Administration software installed in personal computers or terminals
  • Manager software for servers

The basic function of the shield system is monitoring every plugged in storage devices. Any mobile storage devices plugged in have to pass the authentication procedure by the local computer, and the serve if necessary.
A unauthorized device will be rejected and the system will make a historic record for this suspicious device in server for later trace or investigation.

Furthermore, this shield system can be enhanced to protect copyright.

The data stored in the mobile devices are encrypted while the identity information is stored in “hidden area”. If the encryption key in each mobile storage device is assigned unique, the disk hardware and the stored content are binding together, so any illegal copy operations failed.

In general, a mobile storage device in the shield system is no longer a storage device only. It plays the following roles:

  • Intrinsic function: a mobile storage device (typically an USB flash disk).
  • Carrying Identity Information as a smart card does
  • Encryption/Decryption engines
  • Historic Information Recorder

The shield system has been also successfully used in banking environment (also called as “Wave Shield System”(WSS). WSS has the following functions all together: USB-Key to protect accounts, USB flash disk to store data, special mobile disk space for applications, etc.