Acronis and Thursby Software Introduce First Mobile File Management Solution with CAC/PIV Authentication

Arlington, VA and Arlington, TX, October 10, 2013-Acronis®, a leading provider of data protection solutions, and Thursby Software, the market leader in secure Apple® enterprise integration, today announced the delivery of the first mobile file management solution (MFM) to include Common Access Card (CAC) and Personal Identity Verification (PIV) authentication for federal government compliance with the HSPD-12 standard on mobile devices. The new offering, based on the Acronis mobilEcho® MFM solution and PKard from Thursby Software, enables federal organizations to drastically improve mobile users' productivity, while maintaining complete control over data security and compliance.

While mobile device management (MDM) solutions secure and manage mobile devices and their applications, mobilEcho controls and secures files and content as they are accessed by mobile users. The solution, which also complies with other important federal standards such as FIPS 140-2 encryption, authenticates and verifies the identity of government employees before allowing them access to critical documents on a mobile device.

This technology is an important next step as the federal government seeks to provide its employees with the best technology available. In May, the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) approved the use of government-issued Apple iOS6 mobile devices, as part of its effort to enable the secure use of a diverse selection of devices and operating systems. After Apple passed the initial set of requirements for secure mobile device management, Mark Orndorff, DISA Information Assurance Executive & Program Executive Officer for Mission Assurance and Network Ops, said in a statement:

"All of these pieces must be in place to allow the secure use of commercial mobile devices on department networks. DISA is running a pilot program today where we bring this all together."

The combination of CAC/PIV authentication and Acronis mobilEcho's file access and editing capabilities will now allow IT departments at federal agencies and the Department of Defense (DoD) to enable their employees to access files, browse the web, and check email on Apple's iPhones and iPads, while meeting specific government standards.

"With an emphasis on simple and straightforward data management, strong authentication, and encryption, this combined solution from Thursby and Acronis allows for increased productivity without sacrificing security," said Bill Thursby, president and founder of Thursby Software Systems. "This suite of tools is ideally suited for IT professionals in the federal space and at the DoD that want to maintain tough security standards, but also provide the best possible tools for their employees to get their jobs done."

"We now have the mobile file management solution our customers in government agencies asked for: CAC/PIV authentication, FIPS 140-2 validated encryption, and read and write access to file servers, network attached storage and SharePoint, with built-in document editing to stop data leakage," said Anders Lofgren, VP of product management at Acronis. "Acronis mobilEcho, combined with the solutions from our technology partner Thursby, sets a new standard for IT professionals to provide the most secure access to documents using mobile devices in the government industry."

Immediately from Apple's App Store.