iTwins

By Sushant Burde Vaibhav Deshmukh

What is itwins

iTwin is like the two ends of a cable, without the cable.

iTwin is a revolutionary new file sharing and remote access device brought to you by a company called iTwin. It's like two ends of a cable, without the cable. It's as simple to use as a flash drive. It's literally plug and play.

iTwin can connect any two online computers anywhere in the world. iTwin enables you to have access to any or all of your home computer's files and folders while you're on-the-go

you can also use iTwin to access to any or all of your office computer's files and folders

There's no in-built limit to the amount of storage you can access with iTwin

Need of iTwins

Transferring data from one PC to another can be difficult, especially if it's a large amount of data. For example, if you want to send some data to somebody in another country, you’re going to have to go through the hassle of either sending it via e-mail, or upload it to some file hosting service. Chances are, if your file is too large, you’ll probably need to buy more storage.

Enter iTwin. This new USB dongle/USB drive allows users to remotely access data from anywhere in the world. It’s a one time investment

Requirements

Windows and Mac OS X compatible

You can use iTwin on any of both Windows and Mac OSX platforms.

Minimum 512MB 1GB ram needed

15MB space on hard disk

USB 2.0 port

Broadband connection uploading speed should be 1Mbps

How it works

Hardware

Length : 3.54 inches (90 mm).

Width : 0.82 inch (21 mm).

Depth : 0.314 inch (8.0 mm).

Weight : 0.11 pound (50g).

Completely symmetrical, first of its kind in the market.

During physical pairing, connector is used to securely transfer crypto key between the 2 halves of iTwin.

LED Indicator

LED lights indicate status.

Constant Blue light : iTwin is fully functional.

Blinking Blue light : on-going data transfer.

Constant red light : error.

Operating Requirements

Operating temperature: 32° to 158° F (0° to 70° C).

Relative humidity: 5% to 95% non-condensing.

Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m).

Features

Multi-language support No storage limitations No “temp” files

Protection from malware

iTwin does not facilitate malware distribution. Malware spreads through regular USB drives, when a malicious program executes and writes itself to the USB drive automatically (without your permission or without you even realizing it). When the infected USB drive is plugged into another computer, the software may be able to automatically run. There are two necessary conditions for malware spread.

1) Infected File should be copied to a new computer.

2) Infected File should executed on the new computer.

With iTwin, you explicitly select the files that needs to be copied. And the iTwin device does not store any unauthorized files on itself - it only stores iTwin application files. Malicious files cannot trick iTwin into copying files automatically. However, if you use iTwin (or any file transfer system) to knowingly copy suspicious files on to your computer and you execute them (by clicking on them) you might be opening malware.

What is Malware

Malware, short for malicious software, consists of programming (code, scripts, active content, and other software)

it is designed to disrupt or deny operation, gather information that leads to loss of privacy or exploitation, or gain unauthorized access to system resources, or that otherwise exhibits abusive behavior

malware is disguised as genuine software, and may come from an official site. Therefore, some security programs, such as McAfee may call malware "potentially unwanted programs" or "PUP".

Effects of malware

Spyware is a piece of software that collects and sends information (such as browsing patterns in the more benign case or credit card numbers in more serious ones) on users. They usually work and spread like Trojan horses. The category of spyware is sometimes taken to include adware of the less-forthcoming sort.

Trojan horses are similar to viruses in that they get executed by being part of an otherwise useful piece of software.To spread, Trojan horses rely on the useful features of the host software, which trick users to install them.

Data security

iTwin doesn't store any data on itself. It just enables a secure connection between two computers.

Your remote data can only be accessed if you have the physical iTwin with you.

Additionally, you can set up your iTwin to require a password. iTwin is a secure USB device providing Two-Factor Authentication (hardware device + password).

We also allow you to remotely disable iTwin with our remote disable feature. So you can rest assured that your data is safe, even if you lose your iTwin device.

TwinTrust Authentication

Before allowing any data transfer, every iTwin is authenticated by iTwin's TwinTrust servers.

All communication between iTwin and TwinTrust is secured using industry strength HTTPS (RSA 1024 bit, 128 bit RC4) protocol.

After successful authentication by TwinTrust, TwinTrust assist iTwin to discover its other half.

Two-Factor Authentication

After authenticating with TwinTrust, two halves of iTwin mutually authenticate each other using their pre-shared AES 256 bit crypto key.

If password is set, then password verification is performed on both iTwins before data transfer is initiated between two iTwins.

Difference between iTwins and cloud storage

iTwins Cloud storage

Ease of installation Plug 'n' play no configurations no setups needed

Need to download software install & configure it

Storage limit and monthly fees

Files reside on your own computer so no storage limit

First few GB's free then for excess you have to pay monthly fees

Degree of security Hardware based security in addition to password

Password only

iTwins vs flash drive iTwins Flash drive

capacity Access to computer's entire hard drive & any attached storage.

2GB to 256GB (depending on model).

Remote disable If you lose one half, you can remotely disable it. Your data remains safe as nothing is stored on the device itself.

If you lose the device, you lose and expose your data.

Data Encryption AES 256-bit. Standard USB devices don't support encryption. Need additional software.