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June 11, 2001

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Handheld Encryption On The Fly
Certicom's product works in the background to automatically secure data on PDAs

By George V. Hulme (ghulme@cmp.com)

More on encryption:

VeriSign, Ubizen Launch Authentication Software (04/12/01)
InternetWeek: Confusion Rises Over Privacy Law (05/29/01)
EE Times: Startup Aims To Encrypt All Web Traffic (04/17/01)

t's every worker's nightmare: You've lost your handheld computer and all the sensitive work and personal data it contains. Even if all the data were backed up, the device and its information could end up in the wrong hands. Security software maker Certicom Corp. says automatic encryption is the answer.

Most encryption products available for handheld computers require users to manually encrypt the data or shut down the PDA in a predefined sequence. As a result, most of the data ends up stored unencrypted. But Certicom says its MovianCrypt encryption software, introduced this week, solves that problem by working in the background to automatically encrypt and decrypt data as individual files are accessed.

MovianCrypt uses idle CPU time to encrypt data after a file is closed. If the file is smaller than 8 Mbytes, the encryption process won't be noticeable, company officials say. The software requires 98 Kbytes of disk storage and 8 Kbytes of dynamic memory when running. As an added precaution, MovianCrypt doesn't store a user's password on the device, so the password can't be stolen if the device is lost.

MovianCrypt is based on AES 128-bit encryption standard for individual records, including the address book, memo pad, and any other application data files. The software also encrypts application preferences and contents in the clipboard. Users can also opt to disable encryption for specific applications.

Businesses are struggling to find ways to protect the increasing amount of information finding its way onto handheld devices, says Burton Group analyst James Kobielus. Many companies restrict users from storing any company data on a handheld or limit the amount of data they can store, he says. "Neither of these options are very practical. These types of restrictions are a fruitless cause" because most workers ignore such rules.

MovianCrypt, which works with most devices running the Palm OS, is available now. Individual seat pricing starts at $39.95; site licenses begin at 10 seats and are available on a subscription basis.

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