Western Digital unveils new ArmorLock Security Platform

American hard disk drive manufacturer and data storage company Western Digital Corporation's office in Milpitas, California
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Western Digital has revealed details of its new ArmorLock Security Platform, which has been designed to help tackle the diverse security demands of data-centric and content-critical across different industries.

As data security concerns continue to increase in visibility, the data infrastructure giant said it plans to apply the platform across a range of storage solutions.

Unlike many solutions that utilise password-based encryption tech, the ArmorLock Security Platform offers fast availability of assets and allows the content owner to control who can access the data and how, the company claims.

"We built the ArmorLock Security Platform with the belief that the world needs new, fundamental technologies to enable data privacy without hampering data availability while helping to protect against data breaches," commented Jim Welsh, senior vice president and general manager of Consumer Solutions Products at Western Digital.

The ArmorLock Security Platform product lifecycle is covered by a comprehensive set of technologies, from manufacturing to out-of-the-box, in-field updates, as well as configuration and key management that ties directly into hardware-backed modules and biometric protection on some of the latest smartphone and desktop devices.

In terms of features, the platform includes manufacturing technologies that provide each device with a root of trust and digital certificate of authenticity, simple firmware updates, as well as open-source, third-party audited core cryptography with side-channel attack mitigation.

It also offers sandboxed smartphone and desktop apps, communication connections with zero-touch certificate-based provisioning, password-less authentication and zero-knowledge public key management.

The first product utilising the new technology comes in the form of the G-Technology ArmorLock encrypted NVMe SSD, a high-grade security storage solution aimed at creators in the media and entertainment industry.

Available now, the SSD delivers up to 1000 MB/sec read and write speeds via a SuperSpeed USB 10Gbps port, while combining both ease-of-use and next-gen "zero knowledge" security, Western Digital says.

"By combining this new platform with our world-class NVMe SSD products, we are addressing the real pain points our customers face when trying to secure their creative workflows while also allowing them to capture, preserve and access their data at scale and at speed," Welsh added.

Daniel Todd

Dan is a freelance writer and regular contributor to ChannelPro, covering the latest news stories across the IT, technology, and channel landscapes. Topics regularly cover cloud technologies, cyber security, software and operating system guides, and the latest mergers and acquisitions.

A journalism graduate from Leeds Beckett University, he combines a passion for the written word with a keen interest in the latest technology and its influence in an increasingly connected world.

He started writing for ChannelPro back in 2016, focusing on a mixture of news and technology guides, before becoming a regular contributor to ITPro. Elsewhere, he has previously written news and features across a range of other topics, including sport, music, and general news.