By Peter Lavelle
18 June 2010 12:10 GMT
Canon's Director of Information Security Quentyn Taylor has warned that digital printers at the end of their lifespan pose a major security risk. The problem is that images and data enter these printers unencrypted meaning that, once their hard drives are disposed of, information is accessible to anyone. He advised that print suppliers install encrypted hard discs onto their presses to protect customers' details and images.
Speaking to InfoSecurity Magazine yesterday, Taylor said this problem affected high-end digital printers in particular. This is because high-end digital printers, unlike traditional litho presses or even older digital presses, contain servers that store information. Further, Taylor revealed that 40% of print suppliers didn't know this, making the threat widely unacknowledged.
In addition to updating their presses with encrypted hard discs, Taylor advised that print supplier shred the data on their existing discs, instead of simply selling them to third parties. He said: "This is a potentially major security issue that companies using high-end printer technology should be aware of. Just as computer hard drives need erasing at the end of their working life [in an organisation] so the printer hard drive also needs wiping.”
Sources
Anonymous, 'Canon Warns Of Digital Printer Security Issue,' InfoSecurity-Magazine.com, 17 June 2010.
18 June 2010 12:10 GMT
Canon's Director of Information Security Quentyn Taylor has warned that digital printers at the end of their lifespan pose a major security risk. The problem is that images and data enter these printers unencrypted meaning that, once their hard drives are disposed of, information is accessible to anyone. He advised that print suppliers install encrypted hard discs onto their presses to protect customers' details and images.
Speaking to InfoSecurity Magazine yesterday, Taylor said this problem affected high-end digital printers in particular. This is because high-end digital printers, unlike traditional litho presses or even older digital presses, contain servers that store information. Further, Taylor revealed that 40% of print suppliers didn't know this, making the threat widely unacknowledged.
In addition to updating their presses with encrypted hard discs, Taylor advised that print supplier shred the data on their existing discs, instead of simply selling them to third parties. He said: "This is a potentially major security issue that companies using high-end printer technology should be aware of. Just as computer hard drives need erasing at the end of their working life [in an organisation] so the printer hard drive also needs wiping.”
Sources
Anonymous, 'Canon Warns Of Digital Printer Security Issue,' InfoSecurity-Magazine.com, 17 June 2010.
1 comments:
This is an excellent point and a highly overlooked vulnerability in organizations.
Post a Comment