Secure USB Drive

We have posted about this a little earlier this year, but it’s worth mentioning again that the UK Information Commissioner’s Office, which is the data watchdog for the UK Government, continues to take tough measures with public sector organisations that have suffered data breaches.

Most recently, a UK healthcare organisation misplaced 3 unsecured USB flash drives with confidential patient details, and has signed an undertaking confirming that the Trust will take a number of steps to ensure personal data is kept securely.
 
The Assistant Commissioner at the ICO said: “I urge all NHS organisations to restrict and encrypt the amount of sensitive information stored on portable devices. In this case, our investigation found that there was a lack of understanding and awareness among staff of their responsibilities under the Data Protection Act.”

This is good practice, and a good argument for deploying secure USB flash drives.