Apricorn launches Aegis Secure Key 3NXC with built-in USB-C connector

Apricorn has launched the Aegis Secure Key 3NXC – the first device of its kind to have a built-in USB-C connector. This makes it the only hardware-encrypted USB that is compatible with the next generation of laptops, smartphones, tablets and hubs, without the need for a separate A-to-C adapter.

The Aegis 3NXC is the most versatile hardware-encrypted USB on the market: it is compatible with PCs and Macs, as well as any operating system, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and Symbian. This provides an effective way of safeguarding data across today’s remote workforces, where employees are using a diverse range of business and personal devices to carry out their work.

The device automatically encrypts all information as the user uploads it, with military-grade AES XTS hardware encryption.

Jon Fielding, Apricorn’s managing director EMEA, says: “Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, remote and mobile working was on the rise, along with the associated risks to data. As the global workforce shifted from office to home practically overnight, the demand for our encrypted secure keys skyrocketed, as did the demand for our A-to-C adapters.

“We accelerated the release of the Aegis Secure Key 3NXC to provide an efficient way of ensuring that employees using MacBooks, iPads and Android devices can securely store and move sensitive data, wherever and however they’re working.”

The Aegis Secure Key 3NXC completes the Secure Key 3NX family, which Apricorn updates constantly to address evolving security threats and business needs. The 3NXC was created in response to a market that’s moving towards smaller and thinner laptops and tablets that can’t accommodate a USB-A port.

Particularly suitable for highly regulated sectors such as defence, finance, government, manufacturing and healthcare, the Aegis Secure Key 3NXC allows businesses to support safe and productive remote working on a large scale, ensuring that all workers follow information security best practice and comply with regulations such as GDPR.

Ultra-compact in size, the Secure Key 3NXC line is priced to allow affordable data protection across an expanding global remote workforce, while delivering all the advanced security features found in the Aegis family of secure drives.

By offering a range of six storage capacities from 4GB to 128GB, the device allows IT to closely align deployments with the storage needs of each individual employee, reducing overall cost.

Jon Fielding continues: “USB-C is the first truly universal standard for transferring data between devices, and is set to take over from USB-A as the new standard on computers of the future.

“While most computers and laptops still offer both A and C connector ports, the number of manufacturers exclusively committing to type C is growing. We’re developing our products with this next generation of computers in mind – but we will continue to manufacture USB-A compatible devices for those who need them for the foreseeable future.”

The security and operational advantages of the Aegis Secure Key 3NXC include:

• No software – so there’s nothing to keylog or to hack.
• OS agnostic – the device is completely cross platform compatible.
• Onboard keypad – all authentication takes place within the device itself.
• All data, passwords and encryption keys are 256-bit encrypted at rest.
• No host computer is involved in setup, authentication or encryption.
• Forced enrollment – no default PINs ensures that data is not put at risk by employees who fail to change a factory set PIN before deployment.
• IP-68 validation against water and dust damage.
• Separate administrator and user access.
• Read-only options that can be enforced by the administrator or set by the user if allowed by policy.
• Highly configurable with policy such as time out values, Data recovery PINs, and programmable PIN lengths.
• Brute force PIN attack protection.
• Ability to automatically configure multiple devices remotely using Apricorn’s Aegis Configurator tool.

The 3NX family offers one unique feature that is not available on any other hardware encrypted device: the ability to toggle between Fixed Disk and Removable Media (US Pat. No 10,338,840). FIPS 140-2 Level 3 validation is expected shortly.