There are some fundamental differences between USB Copy Protection verse USB Encryption for data on flash drives. Many companies confuse and muddy the terminology between the two. It’s time to clear things up and explain the difference.
In short: USB copy protection secures a file or set of files so they cannot be copied – thus “copy protection.” USB encryption scrambles the source files so they cannot be read unless you decrypt them. Think about this… there is a BIG difference.
Encryption is the process of scrambling files and data so they cannot be accessed unless a password or key is supplied to reassemble the content and put everything back together. This process is known as decryption.
The primary use for USB encryption is to protect files and data in the event the USB stick is lost or stolen.
Where encryption and USB copy protection differ is that with encryption, once you have the password, you can copy the data at will. With USB copy protection, the files and data are locked to the device and cannot be copied off, regardless of the user’s intent.
USB copy protection is similar to encryption with the use of scrambling and unscrambling data; however, USB copy protection adds another layer of security by preventing unauthorized copies. It wraps the data in a specialized algorithm, then uses a customized viewer to decrypt the data for viewing. The viewer requires specific hardware components to run, blocking any ability to copy and play the file elsewhere.
As you can see, USB copy protection is ideal for protecting intellectual property regardless of the user, whereas USB encryption is mainly for protecting data if lost or stolen.
As a side note, a USB stick with encryption can be formatted, thus removing all sensitive data. A USB copy-protected stick, on the other hand, locks content into a Read-Only partition, making deleting or formatting ineffective.
If you need USB encryption, consider using TrueCrypt, a free, open-source encryption tool offering high-level security.
If you need USB copy protection to secure content that must not be copied under any circumstances, visit Nexcopy for professional USB secure flash drive solutions. Their devices also utilize 128-bit AES encryption for maximum protection.
Imagine a chemistry teacher who has spent months creating a comprehensive digital course filled with valuable information, detailed diagrams, and step-by-step video tutorials. The teacher plans to sell this course to students for $1,000 per person.
The teacher decides to use USB encryption to secure the course material. Each USB drive is password-protected, and only students who purchase the course receive the password. At first glance, this sounds secure – no password means no access.
However, the problem begins after the password is entered. Once a student unlocks the USB drive, they can freely:
This means that one paying student can give the entire $1,000 chemistry course to dozens of other people without the teacher earning any additional income. Encryption does not prevent copying – it only delays access until the password is entered.
Now, let’s look at what happens if the teacher uses USB copy protection instead. The teacher provides the same USB course drive, but this time the files are locked with professional USB copy protection technology.
With copy protection:
This ensures that each student must purchase their own USB course drive to access the information, preserving the teacher’s $1,000-per-student revenue and preventing lost sales.
If the chemistry teacher chooses basic encryption, they risk losing thousands of dollars as one student could distribute the unlocked files to an entire class or even upload them online for free. By selecting USB copy protection, the teacher maintains control of the digital course material, protects their intellectual property, and ensures that only paying students benefit from their hard work.
For secure, professional-grade USB copy protection solutions, consider Nexcopy’s secure flash drives which combine 128-bit AES encryption with true copy protection technology.
[autorun] icon=favicon.icoSave this to the root of your USB stick as “autorun.inf”
If you are like me, you’ve done a great bit of searching on the internet to remove Read Only USB partition or to remove CDROM USB partition, and unfortunately the information is very scarce and the information which is out there, isn’t very clear and direct. The only utility we’ve found, is the one used to remove the U3 platform off a retail USB stick made by SanDisk, but chances are you are dealing with a different vendor or stick. In addition, the U3 platform was killed a long time ago by SanDisk because hackers kept using the auto-run function associated with CD-ROM discs to auto-run USB malware.
We found a company that can do this, and they do it in bulk, USBCopier.com is a USB duplication service company that specializes in fixing your problem, like removing a Read Only USB partition. I’m not sure how they do it, but their services worked for us.
As you know, a simple format or delete attempt to the USB device simply doesn’t work…you get the “This disk is write protected” message. The flash drive is configured this way at the chip level, so it’s not a formatting problem. The chip inside the USB flash drive, called the controller, has a configuration setting so the device will appear as a CD-ROM device. Since the vendor commands are not available to access the USB controller chip, you cannot re-configure the device to work like a normal flash drive.
I spoke with USBCopier.com about the issue, and they can remove a USB partition off all types of drives, like USB sticks with Chipsbank controllers, Alcor, SMI, USBest, Innostor and many others. They also said the partition type doesn’t matter, it can be either the Read Only or CDROM and they can remove it. USBCopier also mentioned if they can remove the USB partition, then chances are, they can also recreate it.
The company was a life saver to us and I wanted to pass along the information. It was much cheaper to pay the service fee to remove the USB partition than it was to re-buy all the USB sticks and start from scratch.
Here is the link to their USB duplication service page. Here is the link to their contact page.
If you are in a bit of trouble – I wish you luck – these guys could possibly help.
[autorun] Label=type whatever you want hereFor those of you less familiar with .INF files they are extremely easy to make and use. For the USB Volume name this is what you do: Continue Reading No Comments
