ProCom-Strasser From Austria Unveils fragmentiX for Secure Storage in Cloud

The Austrian IT security company ProCom-Strasser GmbH introduces a security product for cloud applications, enabling companies, operators of critical infrastructures and public authorities to securely store their data in cloud storage solutions.

fragmentiX box

The special technological security concept was developed in cooperation with cryptography experts at the AIT (Austrian Institute of Technology).

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In contrast to classical encryption, which is turned into a fig leaf by the rapidly approaching completion of quantum computers, fragmentiX brings real information theoretical security to the user by splitting resp. fragmenting and storing these fragments separately from each other in different Simple Storage Solutions (S3). Even a future quantum computer can’t produce the original file from too few fragments alone. This approach, which has been known in theory for more than 50 years, has now become an easy-to-use product for companies and authorities through fragmentiX.

The concept: each of the up to 26 fragments does not contain any usable data. Through the deliberate selection and combination of storage locations for these fragments – public cloud storage, private cloud storage or own NAS storage – each fragmentiX user can determine for himself where the data fragments actually are stored. Only when a user-defined number of fragments is reassembled by the fragmentiX devices, the original data is available again. This so-called frX-ratio is the ratio of the fragments required for the restoration of the total number of generated fragments.

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Risk of interception reduced
At least two thirds of all fragments are required to restore the original file. It does not matter which two of the three fragment parts are available – which results in a reduction of the risk of data loss. Different fragmentiX devices can create up to 8, 16 or 26 fragments and transmit them to the storage locations over multiple WAN network connections. This makes monitoring via an ISP (Internet Service Provider) much more difficult. Without patronizing technical decisions of fragmentiX, each user can change and use the appropriate configuration for himself. The use of fragmentiX in a company network is conceivably simple due to its integration as a network drive in the LAN under Windows or Linux-based systems.

fragmentiX models

Werner Strasser, MD, ProCom-Strasser, said: “Every user of modern communication is affected by the imminent end of today’s global encryption by the use of quantum computers. Whether it’s ‘just’ the private holiday photos and medical reports or the construction plans of a company – in the age of ‘asymmetric hybrid warfare’ everyone is invariably a victim of cyberattacks – regardless of whether they are pupils or pensioners, civilians, soldiers or entrepreneurs. The vast majority of people will either ignore or resign to this global threat. With fragmentiXit is our declared goal to give all organizations, which do not want to accept that their data will become the public domain of other actors, a chance to defend themselves in the digital world.“

Thomas Lorünser, cryptography expert and project manager, AIT, said: “As part of the EU project PrismaCloud our experts have succeeded in transferring knowledge from cryptography research into easy-to-use software for the product fragementiX. We are pleased that with ProCom-Strasser we have an Austrian partner on board who can roll-out and offer our innovations on the world market. This proves our central and successful mission in making leading know-how from R&D practically applicable, thus strengthening the Austrian business location.“

AIT stand Milipol: Thomas Lorünser, AIT, Werner Strasser, CEO, ProCom-Strasser,
and Helmut Leopold, head, Center for Digital Safety and Security, AIT

The product innovation was presented at Milipol 2017 in Paris, France, an event for Homeland Security. The AIT exhibition is part of an Austrian group exhibition, organized by Advantage Austria in cooperation with the Austrian Defence and Security Industry.