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New Software Secures Data when Owners Walk Away

Posted by chrisd on from the don't-lost-your-watch dept.

Makarand writes "Leave an operating laptop unattended on your desk and your sensitive data is accessible to anyone who gets hold of it. To limit this risk many users configure their systems to fall into a "sleep" mode after a period of inactivity and ask for a password before the system can be awakened. This constant re-authentication proves to be a headache for many users. Now a Professor and his graduate student at at the University of Michigan have come up with a system called Zero-Interaction Authentication (ZIA), described in this article in The Age, to protect data on mobile devices. The system works by starting to encrypt data the moment the owner walks away from the system. The owners wear a token with a encrypted wireless link with the laptop. If the token moves out of range the ZIA re-encrypts all data within 5 seconds. If the cryptographic token moves within range the system decrypts the information for the owner. The token, which could take many forms, is currently a wristwatch with a processor running Linux designed by IBM."

2 of 302 comments (clear)

  1. Most Beloved Slashdot Members by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    Rank | Real name | Occupation | /. nickname | # fans
    1) Rob Malda - Slashdot founder - "CmdrTaco" - 975
    2) Wil Wheaton - Actor/Activist - "CleverNickName" - 784
    3) John Carmack - Programmer, id Software - "John Carmack" - 606
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    5) Bruce Perens - Writer - "Bruce Perens" - 516
    6) Josh Marotti - J2EE consultant - "FortKnox" - 381
    7) Jeff Bates - Slashdot co-founder - "hemos" - 318

    Please notify me of any corrections. Updates: Added Wil Wheaton per AC comment; Added Bruce Perens; Added John Carmack; Moved Eric Krout up one spot to #4 after overtaking Bruce Perens

    As it stands, I'm more than halfway there toward gaining more fans than Rob "CmdrTaco" Malda. That would be a neat accomplishment and one that I'd be very proud of.

    If I can come through (I was on sabatical for a week), I think it would only be proper for Rob to give me some leadership position here at Slashdot. Perhaps I could serve as a liaison between the members and the editors/coders to ensure that Slashdot continues to develop and "scale" with its increasing membership and database size.

    Thanks for reading. I truly love you all and enjoy the time I spend here at Slashdot. If I can help any of you with anything (even non-Slashdot related), please let me know. I'm always there for friends (and fans ;-D).

  2. Much like my ex-wife by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    as soon as I walk away her legs spread open for others.