Be aware the USB drive.

You might not guess, but those convenient little USB thumb drives are one of the easiest ways to lose data - accidentally or intentionally.

Because of their small size, ease of use and huge storage capacity it is very convenient to take your data almost anywhere. But, this mobility also makes the device (and your data) easy to lose. This is the accidental side of the story. To avoid data loss, be responsible, keep careful track of your USB drive and consider only purchasing USB drives that allow you to encrypt the contents. That way if your USB drive is lost or stolen the encrypted data will be safe from prying eyes.

The more sinister side of the story is the intentional use of USB drives by thieves and hackers to gain access to sensitive data. Here's how it works. A thief places USB drives in the parking lot of a company whose data they want to access. They hope curious employees will pick up the USB drives, plug them into their computer and see what they "found". A popular ploy is to place pictures or an interesting titled document on the USB drive and wait for the user to open one of these files. Unbeknownst to the user, the hacker has arranged for a malicious program to launch upon the opening of these files. These programs can capture all of the key strokes on your computer and upload this information via the Internet to a server the thief/hacker manages. Usernames, passwords, PIN numbers, credit card numbers… anything that is typed into the computer keyboard can be captured, uploaded and stolen. To avoid this situation, resist the temptation to pick up and use a "found" USB drive.

Everybody loves something for free but in this case you may be getting much more than you bargained for.

Questions or comments?

Mike Hanson
Network Security Manager
mhanson@css.edu

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