Apricorn Aegis Secure Key 3NX, Fourth Gen USB Secure Key With Embedded Keypad

Apricorn, Inc. announced the Aegis Secure Key 3NX family.

The company developed this family in response to the increasing demand for low cost, small form-factor encrypted storage devices generated by the growing myriad of data privacy regulations, the most recent being the EU’s GDPR which affects businesses operating within EU nations as well as all companies from other countries that are doing business in the EU ad UK. Other regulations like FISMA, FERPA and HIPAA all require that sensitive data be protected by various means including encryption. And California’s Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) coming into effect in 2020 will be the prototype for a new wave of tougher data protection regulations. Encryption regulations will soon apply to virtually every business that deals with customer data.

“We set out to reduce the cost of this product group and enhance our existing security features,” said Mike McCandless, VP, sales and marketing, Apricorn. “Beyond delivering lower price points across the board, we have expanded the capacity offerings on the lower end to better align with the needs of the consumer. In other words, if all you need are 2 or 4GB drives, you don’t have to settle for an 8GB.“

In addition to operating 25% cooler than its predecessor, the 3NX includes a patent pending RM/FD toggle feature that allows the user to configure the device as removable media or fixed disk. Combined with the 3NX’s embedded keypad, it is compatible with embedded systems that only recognize removable media storage devices (e.g. instrumentation, radios or other equipment that typically lacks a keyboard and precludes the use of devices that employ software in the authentication process).

Designed for high volume corporate deployments, the Aegis Secure Key 3NX has the same feature set as the Secure Key 3z, plus a broader range of capacities from 2 to 128GB. Other standard features include onboard keypad authentication, 256-bit AES XTS hardware encryption, cross-platform compatibility, read-only option, separate admin and user access, data recovery PINs, programmable PIN lengths, and Aegis Configurator compatibility.

The 3NX family is pending a FIPS 140-2 Level 3 validation, which is expected later this year.

Security advantages of company’s hardware encrypted USB storage devices include:

Software-free – There’s nothing to keylog or to hack
OS agnostic and cross-platform compatible
Onboard keypad – Authentication takes place within the device itself
All data, passwords and encryption keys are 256-bit encrypted at rest
Setup, authentication, and encryption involves no host computer
Forced Enrollment – No default PINs to ensure that data is not put at risk by employees who fail to supplant a factory preset PIN with a suitably complex PIN before deployment
IP-67 validated against water and dust damage