Cigent Technology, a provider of embedded cybersecurity in storage devices, has unwrapped the Cigent Secure SSD+, touted by the vendor as the world’s first solid state drive equipped with baked in ransomware prevention capabilities.
Cigent Secure SSD+ incorporates a dedicated artificial intelligence microprocessor with machine learning that monitors disk activity with advanced algorithms to prevent ransomware. The solution has automated safeguards that stops ransomware attacks and protects the data on the drive from being stolen or encrypted by malware.
Benefits of Storage-level Ransomware Prevention
Tom Ricoy, Cigent chief revenue officer said:
“To finally put an end to ransomware and data theft, Cigent has put automated attack prevention as close to the data as possible – in the storage itself – where it can consistently prevent attackers from ransoming files, even if EDR has been circumvented."
When paired with Cigent’s Data Defense software, the solution has leading-edge methods to automatically protect data from ransomware, including:
- Cigent Data Defense software responds to attacks with a “shields up” status that automatically initiates multi-factor authentication to access all protected files.
- Cigent Data Defense Secure Vault automatically locks down data from within the storage device itself, preventing any unauthorized access, such as malware or even trusted Windows processes.
- The drive can optionally be put into read-only mode to protect data from being modified, wiped, or encrypted by ransomware.
- The Cigent software also notifies the Cigent Data Defense console when a ransomware attack is initiated, triggering the console to alert security personnel, SIEMs, and SOARs to engage “shields up” on the rest of the Cigent protected PCs in the organization, even if they don’t have a Secure SSD+.
What Cigent Secure SSD+ Includes
The Cigent Secure SSD+ also includes:
- Complete erasure verification and the ability to capture detailed data access logs in the drive itself.
- Safeguards to prevent disabling security controls, including an embedded storage firmware heartbeat that detects if the Cigent software is disabled.
- If it is disabled, the Cigent Secure SSD+ drive responds by hiding the protected data, making it instantly inaccessible to attacks.
Cigent Secure SSD+ will be available for purchase starting in May 2023. Future updates will include the ability to prevent the drive from being cloned, wiped, or accessed if the system is booted from an alternate OS.
