Windows Vista"s full-disk encryption solution is attracting much customer attention, but deployment isn"t foolproof, advises a Gartner analyst. When the phone rings in the office of Gartner analyst Neil MacDonald, chances are good that if it"s a client calling with a question about Windows Vista security, it will be about BitLocker.
BitLocker is an implementation of full-disk encryption designed to protect system files and data, and it"s easy to see why businesses are clamoring for encryption, given the stream of organizations that have had the dubious pleasure of appearing in headlines such as "Lost Laptop" and "Confidential Data Missing" over the past few years. Notable examples include the theft of a Veterans Affairs laptop in May 2006 and the Transportation Security Administration"s loss of a hard drive carrying 100,000 employee records in May 2007.