Integral 4GB Crypto-197 256-Bit Hardware Encrypted 3.0 USB Secure Flash Memory Drive - Certified to FIPS 197, Protection & Rugged Double-layer Waterproof Design XTS- AES

I have been an end-user of crypto since the 90's starting with PGP for DOS. I am not an expert but I do have a general understanding as a lay person. I do not work in IT. Many reviews of Integral encrypted USB drives contain ambiguities. Some is nonsence, or maybe the built in software changed through time and development. I use Windows 7 PC and laptop. I also occasionally still use XP. I have no interest in WIndows 10/11 as I wish to retain control of my machines, albeit I know they are very out of date. The Integral Crypto FIPS 140-2 Dual claimed to be backwards compatible for older OSes. I also considered the Kingston Ironkey Keypad 200 and S1000 (not sure latter works on Win7). The 200 is backwards compatible at least for Win7. Ironkeys are I think made in China. My Integral was made in Taiwan (I believe), a definite plus for me. I took a chance and got the Integral. I am very pleased so far. What's it for? I'm a 'contractor' who receives sensitive files by a private secure email system, to my PC. I work on the files then would encrypt them before copying them to a standard USB stick. To my laptop, decrypt them, then do what I have to do with them, then securely erase them. On PC and laptop I used a software encrypted virtual partition system (encrypted container). It was not fast but it worked well and was I believe quite secure. I only keep the files up to about 4 days and never used the USB drive for longer-term storage. The Integral is an excellent replacement for the manual encryption/decryption I had to do. It works, as I want it. I am very happy with this purchase. There is only one negative but it doesn't really concern me: Integral software run from the drive can keep my owner details and if I wish show them to anyone who finds the USB drive. The icon is there (with other similar icons on the main program display) but it seems to do nothing. The data entry form is there on setup, I filled it in, but subsequently the icon to display the owner details does nothing. It might be that for many it is better to be anonymous if the USB is found, I'm less likely to be forced to divulge the key, so perhaps this was a specific security-based decision by Integral, but the effort to strip out the owner details entry page and display icon was too much for them. So it doesn't work. I don't see the data stored anywhere else, I looked. The positives: It is FAST (for me, used to software based encryption). I can copy files from PC encrypted virtual container to USB drive and it works (other reviews seem to be WRONG re this). I can copy the files back from the USB to the encrypted virtual container. It just works. It's seamless. Just as if working with a normal USB drive. No clunkyness at all. I can OPEN PDF's and docx's directly from the USB - I don't need to copy them to the PC or laptop first. I can modify the docx's on the USB and save them as updated right there in situ. I don't even need to copy the files to my laptop any more. This is great. People say photos cannot be seen on USB. Yes they can, I can see big or small thumbnails and when using two different photo viewing/editing programs on the PC, I can see the images right there in the USB with NO copying required. It also works if I wish to copy files to/from USB to a Windows7 internal encrypted folder (I forget the name for this). The problems that so many others refer to don't exist for me. I can recommend this USB. Neither Integral nor Kingston give much information away re their encrypted USB but Integral does make available their representations (self-certification?) to NIST in USA that it is FIPS 140-2 Level-3 compliant. All I see on Kingston pages is snake oil self-promotion. Maybe Kingston are also excellent so I'm not challenging their product, but like many others I ideally have questions. I almost bought the Ironkey 200 but was worried what happens if the tiny rechargable battery dies and besides, the instructions re setting it up and the various coloured light combos was utterly bewhildering. Now, should Kingston wish to send me a 200 or an S1000 to test I would be more than happy to compare them with the Intergal and give an honest lay-persons assessment! What else: 7 characters are etched on one side of the plug, this correlates to the unique ID 7 digits they specify. But there is a different 7 digits the other side (followed by 140-2), is this a batch no, product code or sequence for a government backdoor? I trust and hope not. There was limited info in early 2000's of an alleged crypto weakness but the actual article seems to have vanished, I can't find it. Surely the product was improved since then. Its not as deep as their specification, I thought it might not fit my thin laptop, in fact it is 12mm deep only so does fit into the socket on my thin laptop. When using the Administrator password you can click to make the drive read-only to the user password account. Then you can open files from the USB, copy them to the PC where they have no restrictions, but you cannot modify them on the USB itself nor can you add any other files to the USB. I had to play with this to work it all out. IF I needed to access but not modify files using a believed unsecure computer I would put the USB into read-only mode on my laptop before inserting it into the unknown PC. To use the USB generally you put it in the USB socket and a read-only (pseudo CD/DVD) drive launches immediately opening the program screen. Enter the relevant password whereupon a pseudo USB drive (Drive I to me) opens up, just like a real external drive. The program running from the pseudo CD/DVD drive remains on screen (you can move other programs on top of it) then select lock icon and the I drive vanishes. Use the system icon to 'remove' the pseudo CD/DVD and the program vanishes. It's all quite elegant and I like it. The time-out for auto-dismounting the I drive is fixed at 10 mins of non computer use, or lockscreen/screensaver activating. The countdown display warnings on wrong password entry are very clear. After 6 fails it wipes everything to factory-fresh state. My 64Gb USB shows fat32 formatting on the I drive. About 59Gb available to use. There is only the One data storage partition as one would expect (unlike the Integral 360 models? that are much cheaper & I think offer both encrypted and conventional storage each with their own unique drive letters). The encryption is done in hardware and all within the USB. The USB is rubber coated, tough a bit squeezeable, supposed to be shockproof and waterproof to IPX8 (4 feet 60 mins) which I wouldn't doubt. The factory packaging in a sort of soft blister pack would be tamper-evident had it been fiddled with before delivery. My PC with 3.61Ghz AMD FX 8150 is quite old but does have USB 3.0 and I was able to store 1Gb of files to the USB in 17 seconds. My usual software-based encryption would take about 4x as long. Now... if only I could lay my hands on an Ironkey 200 or S1000 I'd love to compare. I am beholden to nobody, I bought this USB and have been as accurate as I can be. I hope this will help others in making their decisions regarding encrypted USB drives.

I tried purchasing an encrypted USB last year which resulted in many returns and repurchases because nothing was compatible with my Mac. This year, I had to relive the encrypted USB nightmare but this product has absolutely saved me!It was the first one I tried, didn’t require me to have to read lengthy and confusing instructions, worked perfectly with my Mac (OS Monterey Version 12.6.6) easy to just plug and play, no fuss, no stupid complicated password requirements.. I couldn’t be happier! Thankyou for saving me from the stress I went through last year!

Looks good and cheaper than some more flashy encryted memory sticks I would highly recommend this as long as you don't mind the software being on the complicated side. I have other secure sticks which are more intuitive but this one, ehilst thorough, doesn't make life easy.The set up is *relatively* easy and the 'password reminder' function is neat, as long as you don't have a reminder like "Your Mum's maiden name"... the whole point of a USB stick to store sensitive information is not to make it easy to get into!The encrytion is a high quality type and should be pretty unhacable apart from a long winded 'brute force' attack (another reason to make the password not using common words, relatives names etc.)My main criticism is that once files are on the stick you can't look at them without copying them somewhere else, ie the file list is viewable in the window the software opens but to see what it is you have to copy it somewhere else, such as your PC hard drive. There is no way to get a preview or open the files directly. They have to be decrypted by copying them elsewhere, as I just mentioned. Apart from the lack of convenience this means that the sensitive information you encrypted will be on your PC drive unencrypted now and (even if deleted and the Wastebasket cleared) could probably be recovered by 'accidentally deleted/corruption recovery' software.It would be better if an item could either use some sort of basic built in viewer or, if that would be prohibitably expensive or difficult, at least open directly in a read-only mode so the data is only in the short term memory of the opening program (I imagine much harder to recover by a hacker even a relatively short time after closing the reading program) and never unencrypted on a physical drive.

Thin enough to squeeze into other socket between other usb plugs but not so small so you would misplace it.Plastic package is adequate and sensible.Software is simple to use.Manual fairly easy to read.I got this for a medium-ish competent user and they find it very good.Cannot comment on speed as it's mostly docs rather than media.6months on...Very pleased still. No sign of wear. Software takes some abuse but is very stable.No data loss despite daily use. User is very happy still