Apricorn Aegis Padlock A25-PL256-S64 User Manual

The Aegis Padlock offers 128 or 256 bit AES real-

time encryption with the Initio 1607 cryptographic 

engine which is NIST (National Institute of Standards 

and Technology) and CSE (Communications Security 

Establishment) hardware AES (Advanced Encryption 

Standard) certified algorithm, certificate number 

#1174.

It also creates a secure “Trusted Path” between 

the Aegis Padlock and host computer that protects 

all data on the drive. An additional security feature 

includes the way the Aegis Padlock is recognized 

by the operating system. Once the USB cable is 

connected, the operating system sees the Aegis 

Padlock as a removable device in ‘media not present’ 

state, so accessing the drive is not even possible. 

After PIN login is completed the device is unlocked 

and the operating system invokes a ‘media inserted’ 

event. Complete security is ensured with the data 

stored in AES encryption; even if the drive is removed 

the data will be completely inaccessible.

Software solutions for hard drives have been available 

for some time now. They have often been criticized for 

being inconvenient, slow and like any other software, 

prone to needing updates. In contrast, hardware 

encryption is very reliable, fast and convenient. Since 

hardware encrypted drives are not subject to updates, 

the costs related to traditional software solutions are 

eliminated. Another great advantage of hardware 

encrypted drives, they can be easily reset. This 

reduces the amount of time spent scrubbing the drive 

or erasing disk data, which in turn stretches the IT 

department budgets when redeployment of assets is 

necessary.