Gartner Comments on Self-Encrypting Drives in Two New Reports
Last month, Gartner published its 2010 Hype Cycle for Storage Technologies and its Hype Cycle for Data and Application Security. Both reports devote considerable space to the evaluation and outlook for self-encrypting drives and Trusted Computing Group's specifications for these drives.
Most of you in IT security by now probably are aware that TCG developed a specification to enable hardware-based encryption in hard disk drives and to enable interoperability among drives using that specification. Adoption of that specification has taken off in recent months, with a number of vendors now providing products.
Now, Gartner is weighing in with its opinions on these drives. In the 2010 Hype Cycle for Storage Technologies, Gartner analyst John Monroe notes a number of factors pushing data protection: financial fallout from data losses, telecommuting and more use of consumer technologies in business environments and notes a very small number of HDDs are preloaded with encryption capabilities. "This soon will change," he says, with anticipated adoption of the TCG specifications. Gartner says that within 5 years, all HDDs will ship pre-loaded with industry standard full disk encryption technology. He notes that key management is crucial for enterprises.
Impact on performance is one question many have had about full disk encryption and self-encrypting drives. Gartner notes that there is no impact to system or drive performance, which is echoed in actual drive testing conducted earlier this year by Trusted Strategies.
In its second report, Hype Cycle for Data and Application Security, Gartner analyst John Girard evaluates "interoperable storage encryption" as developed by TCG in its specifications. He advises Gartner clients to "...evaluate emerging TCG hardware solutions..." and demand roadmaps for hardware-based encryption from vendors. The report suggests that system performance and stability will be better with hardware encryption and that drives with hardware encryption will be more portable and easier to dispose of.
Check the reports to learn more.
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