Phison Enhanced Flash Drive Controllers

Phison Electronics Corp., in USB flash drive controllers, introduced its Enhanced Storage solution for Windows 7. The Enhanced Storage controllers PS2251-33 and PS2251-50 provide flash drive password protection as a built-in feature in Windows 7, putting security at a user’s fingertips.

         PS2251-33

Enhanced Storage, initially presented by Microsoft at WinHEC 2008, is a standardized way of password protecting USB devices in Windows, and must be implemented by USB controller hardware. The PS2251-33 and PS2251-50 from Phison are the first flash controllers to support this new feature, which utilizes the IEEE 1667 Password Silo security specification as the device communication protocol. The controllers have been qualified by WHQL (Windows Hardware Quality Labs) and provide seamless integration between Windows 7 and USB flash drives.
 
“Currently there is limited USB flash drive security standard for the consumers. With various kinds of hardware and software out there, drive manufacturers may find these add-ons difficult to promote and manage,” said KS Pua, CEO, Phison Electronics Corporation. “By working with Microsoft and integrating the IEEE 1667 technology, our Enhanced Storage solution lays out a common security protocol with extensibility, yet offers a simple password protection feature enriching the Windows 7 user experience. We look forward to receiving positive feedback from customers.”

”The need for a standard password implementation for consumer storage devices has been an issue in the marketplace for some time,” said John Loveall, Director of Program Management at Microsoft. “The Enhanced Storage architecture in Windows 7 provides an out-of-the-box solution for password protection of USB storage devices.  Microsoft is very excited about Phison’s announcement of hardware support of Enhanced Storage. With Windows 7, this will provide an integrated device solution to the consumer.”

Enhanced Storage is as simple as it gets. In Windows 7, a user can set the password on his new drive and also choose own recovery password and a reminder hint. When locked, the drive cannot be seen and accessed. The drive will also be locked automatically if the PC shuts down, goes into standby mode, or is unplugged from the PC. Moreover, an Enhanced Storage device has a factory-set limit that resets the drive after a number of consecutive failed log-in attempts. This technology eliminates possible brute force attacks.

The Phison PS2251-33 and PS2251-50 controllers are already available to USB drive manufacturers in preparation for the launch of Windows 7. PS2251-33 is a high-performance controller capable of over 20MB/s write speed on MLC flash. PS2251-50 is an entry-level controller that does not require an oscillator on the drive, targeted to save system cost for manufacturers.