Inflexpoint Technologies Home Page

An overview

Product Comparison chat	Proteg version 3.2	Proteg Enterprise 2005
Target user	Home User	Corporate & Home User
Operating System	Windows 2000, 2003, XP	Windows 2000, 2003, XP
Domain server login	Local user account only	Local and windows domain user account
Directory server support	No	Yes
Who can activate Proteg enabled account	Administrator only	User proteg enabled his/her own user account
USB flash drive support	All major brands	All major brands
Anti password keylogger	Yes	Yes
Lock screen when USB Flash drive is pulled out	Yes	Yes
Emergency account	Yes	Optional
Price	USD 19.90	USD 29.90
Licensing scheme	Machine based, unlimited user	Machine based, unlimited user

The sophistication in information technology continues to revolutionize businesses by enabling companies to process, store and share enormous amounts of information. With increased dependency on such technology comes increased risk and protection of critical information often rests on a simple password.

Weak passwords - the way most people access their computers today - no longer provide sufficient authentication security to overcome current threats. Over the years the password technique has not kept up with new technologies and methods used by hackers. One can easily gain access to the latest hacking program, many freely available over the Internet, enabling unauthorized access to valuable information resources which reside in your computer. Unauthorized access also means invasion of your privacy.

Password improvement methods are constrained and not productive. Many methods involve prohibiting the use of names or words; requiring a minimum length; requiring a mix of lower-case, uppercase, numeric and punctuation; and forcing passwords to expire and be reset frequently. However, these methods increase distress on the user and often cause the user to forget a password. Consequently, many users circumvent the password improvement methods by writing down their passwords - hence increases the vulnerability of exposing the passwords to undesirable parties. The result is that by attempting to strengthen the password authentication method itself, we often make the system weaker, more costly and less accessible for the right people.

Due to the increasing threats, passwords can no longer keep pace with the security requirements of today’s challenging computing world. To better secure our information assets, sophisticated techniques for user identification and authentication have been introduced to substitute or improve on passwords. These methods have traditionally been based on deploying and maintaining an additional piece of hardware for each user. These methods can certainly provide much greater security than passwords. Hardware based systems (commonly known as two-factor authentication systems), in particular, create a physical link between a user and his identity. User is required to present the physical hardware (something the user has) and provide the correct password (something the user knows) that corresponds to the said hardware in order to gain legitimate access to the system.

Smart cards and one-time password generator devices can be very effective in providing two-factor authentication, but are typically too expensive, difficult to manage and inflexible. Despite the enhanced level of security provided, these technologies come at high costs, much of which is due to added hardware component.

A large gap now exists in security systems between password authentication and these more complex forms of authentication that normally include a client-based piece of hardware or software. Proteg offers a cost effective security solution for individuals, especially those on the move, to protect their personal or notebook computers by preventing unauthorized access. It helps you realize the benefits of your investment in security tools while ensuring that adequate steps are taken to protect your information assets.

This page was last updated on December 2004