secure government data

Government

CUI Protection: Securely sharing Government documents & data

  Using Safeguard PDF Security to protect government data & facilitate secure document sharing

Protect CUI: control distribution, access and use of confidential information

Government departments and agencies need to be able to control the access to and distribution of information which they hold at different levels of confidentiality, and which they must distribute to many different people.

At one level it is enough that a document can be authenticated by the recipient as being from government and cannot be altered or misrepresented.

At another level information is usually for distribution to specific groups or levels of officers, and not for distribution outside that.  At a further level, information is for distribution to specific individuals and nobody else.

In the ordinary course of events, documents coming in these categories have markings to show who is entitled to use them (protectively marked).  Coming from a paper world, the markings are usually stamped on the physical documents.  And although we have now moved to the digital era, the markings need to be translated into controls that prevent onwards distribution of controlled information, a requirement that was ably demonstrated by Edward Snowden who redistributed uncontrolled copies of quite a lot of secret documents.

Document redaction

Another area where government requires better documentary control is the publishing of documents with redactions (sections blacked out because the information is sensitive).  By publishing documents that can be processed with normal software, hackers have been able to re-process the documents and remove redactions, removing the value of the redaction in the first place by highlighting what was removed as being sensitive.  Locklizard PDF DRM software however prevents this.

Secure document exchange

Locklizard’s document DRM system prevents people from being able to read documents forwarded to them without authorization.  Government departments can securely exchange documents in different environments without the need to implement a specific infrastructure.  Documents can be locked to specific devices, countries, and IP addresses or range of IPs so that they cannot be used outside certain environments and/or locations.  Locklizard PDF DRM software also logs document use so you can see who viewed/printed your documents, where and when.  And dynamic watermarks can be applied to viewed/printed documents so you can identify leaks if a photo or photocopy is made.

NIST compliance

Locklizard methods follow the guidance of the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for encryption appropriate for cost effective security to secure government documents.  Encryption technology is used to protect documents at rest and information in transit.  Locklizard are not authorized to include military algorithms, so our products would not be appropriate for very high levels of security, but could prove very valuable in addressing levels such as commercial in confidence, where the RSA and AES algorithms are approved for use.

Why Locklizard for government data protection & secure document sharing?

Locklizard provides a stronger alternative to password protection & cloud secure information sharing systems

  • Document Controls

    Wide range of DRM controls to ensure documents cannot be copied or shared and you retain full control over them at all times.

    • Stop editing of content.  Users cannot modify content in any way, but you can allow them to make annotations (markups and notes) if you want.
    • Stop copying of content.  Copy and paste is automatically prevented so users cannot select content and copy it into another application.
    • Stop screen grabbing – stops users taking high quality screen grabs using screen grabbing tools even from remote systems.
    • Stop printing (or limit the number of prints).  If printing is allowed then we automatically prevent printing to file drivers (e.g. PDF files).
    • Allow offline use – no forcing of users to be online to view protected documents.

  • Expiry & Revocation

    Maintain full control over how long documents can be accessed even after distribution.

    • Automatically expire documents after a number of days use, views, prints, or on a fixed date.  Ensure information can no longer be viewed after a certain time frame is reached.
    • Revoke documents and user access instantly (regardless of where they are located).  Ensure access to information is terminated instantly.

  • Device & location locking

    Control the devices and locations your protected documents can be accessed from.

    • Automatically locks document use to authorized devices to prevent sharing.

    • Control the number of devices for each user that your protected documents can be used on.

    • Lock use to locations to control where your protected documents can be used from (e.g. a specific country or office location only).

  • Dynamic Watermarks

    Add dynamic watermarks to viewed and/or printed pages to identify users.  Dynamic variables are replaced by user data at print/view time.

    You only have to protect a document once for all users rather than having to protect documents individually for each user in order to display unique user information (name, email, etc.).

  • Audit / Log Use

    Log when users view and print documents, how many times, from where and when.

    See what devices and operating systems users are using.

  • Secure Distribution

    Full control over document distribution:

    • Secure documents on your local computer – no uploading of unprotected files to a server.  You therefore retain full control over unprotected documents and ensure they can never be exposed to the wrong people.
    • Distribute secure documents just like any other file – upload them to a cloud server, your web site, send by email or distribute on CD, USB, etc.
    • There are no passwords or codes for users to enter so they cannot be shared.  Keys are transparently and automatically securely transferred to authorized devices and locked to those devices.

  • Simple to use & cost effective

    Our document security software is simple to use and cost effective:

    • Secure documents by right clicking on them in Windows Explorer.
    • Manage users and document access via our web-based administration system.
    • Automate document protection, user management and document access with our command line and API tools.
    • Our free PDF Viewers provide a stable PDF rendering platform to insulate users from security issues that PDF applications frequently introduce when adding new features or fixing bugs.  There are also two zero installation Viewers (users can access documents without installing anything on their device) – a Web Viewer for viewing protected PDF documents online in a browser, and a USB Viewer for offline use.

Protection of CUI (controlled unclassified information) & NIST 800-171 requirements

DFARS: Safeguarding covered defense information when dealing with third parties

When dealing with third parties and external service providers, government departments need to protect sensitive documents even if they are marked as unclassified.

To this end, NIST 800-171 regulates the management of government data while it is residing in, processed by, or traversing through nonfederal inforamation systems.  Government bodies and third parties they do business with (contractors and sub-contractors) must comply with NIST 800-171 where CUI is involved ensuring data is handled and secured in an appropriate manner as it moves through nonfederal systems.

Locklizard’s document DRM more than adequately covers the NIST 800-171 requirements for safeguarding data and CUI protection.  It ensures documents are shared securely and cannot be misused regardless of where they reside.

Safeguard PDF DRM Security can protect CUI and other sensitive government data from unauthorized use, ensure information is not tampered with, and enable secure document sharing.

Locklizard takes your document security seriously.  Share documents securely without insecure passwords or plug-ins, and enforce access, location, expiry, and usage controls.  Our DRM technology ensures documents remain safe no matter where they reside with US Gov Strength encryption, licensing, and DRM controls.  Protected document content is decrypted in memory and no temporary files are used.

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