Product Review: GoldKey Secure USB Token - Information Security Magazine - Page 1

Product Review: GoldKey Secure USB Token

IT COMPLIANCE


GoldKey Secure USB Token
REVIEWED BY JOEL SNYDER

GoldKey

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Price: Starts at $132 per user token

The GoldKey Secure USB Token works with Windows and Macintosh operating systems to provide a secure place to stash encryption keys for virtual disks. By keeping encryption keys on a small, removable USB token, GoldKey simplifies the task of locking away important information on laptops and encourages good security behaviors.

GoldKey takes on one of the most difficult tasks in hardware-supplemented encryption by providing a manageable hierarchy of master keys, group encryption keys, and the ability to duplicate tokens.


PerformanceA  

We had no problems in our tests of GoldKey USB on Windows and Mac laptops. Everything worked as advertised without any problems or bugs.

One of the main concerns about encrypted virtual hard drives is the impact on system performance. We tested a GoldKey encrypted virtual disk against one using the operating system's native encryption system (both Windows XP and Mac OS X), as well as a local laptop drive. On our ThinkPad laptop running Windows, the GoldKey disk was about 50 percent faster than a drive encrypted using Windows tools, and about the same speed as the local 7200 rpm laptop drive. On a MacBook Pro, GoldKey was 75 percent faster than the native OS X encryption, although about 60 percent slower than the local 7200 rpm laptop drive. Windows users should see little performance impact in modern laptops.


This was first published in January 2009

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