The first line of defense on any computer is and always will be the user, but we know the situation all too well. For most people, security is a nuisance and they don't take all the necessary precautions. Meanwhile, malware never lets its guard down, waiting to exploit the first crack. The people behind Secure-K propose to address the problem by offering an encrypted operating system on a USB drive protected by a PIN number.
Security, security, security. Keys, locks, alarms, codes, passwords, fingerprints, magnetic strips, facial and eye recognition... the list goes on. There are many defense mechanisms, but we must never lose sight of their limits. Unfortunately, a large number of users still ignore issues like security and privacy, even with clear examples of what could happen if someone truly prepared unleashed all their firepower. Of course, malware distributors aren't interested in specific targets, and they use tactics like ransomware, which is gaining ground every day. The company Mon-K has a suggestion: Secure-K, an operating system contained in an encrypted, PIN-protected USB drive.
Yes, I'll be the first to admit it: the presentation video looks like one of those television sales ads in which someone plugs in a charger and sets fire to half the house just to sell a better alternative. Everything known so far about Secure-K comes from its official page: access to the operating system begins with entering the PIN number on the drive's keypad, and once connected to the computer, it works (in theory) like any Live USB.
Apparently, Secure-K will offer anonymous browsing (I assume via Tor), a complete office suite, fully encrypted text, video, VoIP, synchronization, and backups, although the email section has a big “coming soon” at the bottom.
All doubts about Secure-K will be cleared in October, when it hits the market in 8, 16, 32, and 64-gigabyte versions. There will also be personal and enterprise editions (which include more capacity and remote administration, among other things), but in all cases, the price is unknown. If you let me think about it for a moment and compare images... I'd say that Secure-K is a customized version of the encrypted USB drive that Toshiba presented in February 2015, with some variant of Ubuntu inside. We'll find out soon enough.
