In February, Pfizer, the world’s largest research-based biomedical and pharmaceutical company, reported the theft of a laptop possibly exposing 800 current and old employees and contractors to identity theft.
On the laptop were names, credit card numbers, addresses, phone numbers, hotel loyalty program numbers as well as a incalculable of other data. It did not appear any social security numbers or PIN codes were revealed.
The thieves stole a password protected laptop from a contractor's house who was making travel arrangements and meeting schedules for Pfizer. Many operating systems store application information in numerous locations on your system. Full-Disk encryption is the only way to protect your entire hard-drive.
Full disk encryption benefits outweigh those of regular file or folder encryption and vault encryption.
Full-Disk Encryption:
Swap space and temporary folders are files which could reveal confidential information, but now can be encrypted along with most all other data, with full disk encryption
Support for pre-boot authentication (PBA) which prevents the operating system from loading until the user confirms the right password
Allows for immediate destruction of all data by destroying the cryptographic key
Due to recent lap-top thefts and security breaches, it is vital that full data encryption is enlisted by individuals to best protect all confidential information. This is the same reason the US Government is currently conducting a comparison of various FDE solutions to select and implement the best one. If your critical data is housed in susceptible locations, safeguard it using hard-disk encryption techniques.
