New hardware-triggered erasure, multi-drive encryption, expanded Linux support, and CSfC-listed enterprise storage extend data-at-rest protection across defense mission systems.
Mission data doesn’t reside in one place. It’s generated and stored across unmanned platforms, tactical workstations, enterprise servers, and forward-deployed infrastructure. Each environment presents unique challenges for protecting sensitive and classified information, particularly when systems operate beyond the reach of traditional security infrastructure.
Cigent’s latest product updates expand the capabilities available to defense organizations, OEMs, and system integrators for securing mission data throughout its lifecycle. From hardware-controlled data sanitization to expanded software encryption capabilities and CSfC-listed enterprise storage, these advancements address four important areas of mission-data protection.
When an unmanned platform becomes disabled, a tactical system is lost, or equipment is at risk of capture, protecting the data it carries becomes critical. In these situations, conventional sanitization approaches that depend on single points of failure: operating system functionality, software commands, or network connectivity may not be practical.
Cigent’s new M.2 2230 Secure SSD with Hardware-Triggered Erase introduces an operational failsafe: a dedicated hardware interface that enables the host platform to initiate secure data erasure directly within the SSD’s firmware. Rather than relying on an operator to execute a software command or a remote system to initiate sanitization over a network, a properly integrated host platform can activate the erase function through a physical hardware signal.
The drive then performs a two-stage sanitization process:
This capability is particularly relevant to embedded and autonomous mission platforms. For example, an unmanned system could be designed to initiate the hardware erase signal when its onboard controller identifies a predefined critical condition, such as an unrecoverable system failure or imminent loss of the platform.
The host system must provide the trigger and sufficient power for erasure to complete, but the process itself does not depend on the operating system or network connectivity. For defense organizations and platform manufacturers, hardware-triggered erasure provides additional resilience in protecting mission data during circumstances where conventional sanitization methods may be unavailable. For more information, read Cigent Secure SSD M.2 2230 PCIe Gen4 with Hardware-Triggered Erase Datasheet.
Defense computing environments increasingly rely on multiple storage devices to support operating systems, applications, sensor information, and other mission data. Securing these systems requires encryption protection that extends beyond the primary storage device. Cigent Software Full Drive Encryption (SW FDE) now supports encryption of multiple physical drives within a single system, providing comprehensive software encryption coverage across multi-drive configurations.
This enhancement provides greater deployment flexibility for workstations, servers, and specialized mission platforms where sensitive information may reside across multiple drives. For classified environments, Cigent SW FDE provides an independently implemented software encryption layer that can be paired with hardware full drive encryption and pre-boot authentication as part of a qualifying NSA CSfC Data at Rest (DAR) architecture.
Linux-based systems play an important role across defense computing environments, supporting specialized workstations, enterprise servers, and mission-specific applications. Cigent is expanding its Software Full Drive Encryption capabilities with support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), providing organizations with additional flexibility when implementing data-at-rest protection across different computing platforms.
This enhancement extends Cigent’s software encryption capabilities beyond Windows, supporting defense programs and integrators that rely on Linux-based infrastructure. Together with multi-drive support, expanded Linux compatibility enables Cigent SW FDE to address a broader range of mission-system configurations and deployment requirements.
Sensitive and classified mission data increasingly resides beyond traditional endpoints. Enterprise servers, edge computing systems, storage infrastructure, and forward-deployed platforms all require robust data-at-rest protection without compromising the performance and scalability their missions demand. Cigent has expanded its portfolio of NSA CSfC-listed Secure SSDs with U.2 and E3.S enterprise storage form factors.
Validated under NIAP VID 11669, these drives are listed on the NSA CSfC Components List as Hardware Full Drive Encryption (HWFDE) Encryption Engine components.
The two form factors address different enterprise requirements:
Importantly, an encrypted drive alone does not constitute a complete CSfC DAR solution. Paired with Cigent Pre-Boot Authentication (PBA), the drives provide hardware encryption with authenticated access before protected storage is unlocked and made available to the operating system. In a hardware/software FDE CSfC DAR architecture, an independent software full drive encryption layer provides the second layer of protection.
The addition of U.2 and E3.S form factors expands the enterprise storage options available to defense teams building CSfC DAR architectures for mission-critical infrastructure, from data centers to deployable edge systems. For a deeper look at the drives and their role in CSfC architectures, read Protecting Mission Data with CSfC-Listed U.2 and E3.S Secure Storage.
These product updates reflect Cigent’s continued investment in securing mission data across the diverse environments where defense organizations operate.
From hardware-triggered sanitization to multi-drive software encryption, expanded Linux support, and CSfC-listed enterprise storage, Cigent continues to develop the capabilities needed to protect sensitive and classified information across modern defense infrastructure.
Data Secured. Mission Assured.
Contact Cigent to learn more about these capabilities and how they can support your mission-data protection requirements.
Kelvin Quezada is the Director of Product Strategy at Cigent, where he leads strategy, positioning, and go-to-market efforts for the company’s Data-at-Rest protection solutions. With more than a decade of experience across cybersecurity deployments, product marketing, and technical enablement, he translates complex technical concepts into clear, mission-focused value for defense programs.
