James Y. Chen MD, Presenter: Nothing to Disclose

Paras Lakhani MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

William W. Boonn MD, Abstract Co-Author: Co-founder, iVirtuoso, Inc, Baltimore, MD Research grant, Siemens AG

Woojin Kim MD, Abstract Co-Author: Co-founder, iVirtuoso, Inc Consultant, Amirsys, Inc

TrueCrypt is a free, cross-platform, open-source encryption solution that can provide increased security for research and educational data on portable computers.

With portable computers outselling desktop computers, research or educational data, which may hold or have links to protected patient data, is at increasing risk of loss or theft. Freely available, open-source software can help secure data and minimize the risk of Health Information Privacy and Portability Act (HIPPA) violations.

The simple removal of a hard drive from its host computer and mounting it from another computer will bypass operating system level file and user account security, allowing easy access to potentially sensitive data. With portable computers, theft or loss places data at risk for this type of retrieval. TrueCrypt is a free, cross-platform, open-source data encryption package that can be used to secure data against this type of risk. This exhibit illustrates its various functions and usage.

TrueCrypt is a truly free, cross platform, open-source encryption solution with various options, which are consistent among its supported operating systems from Windows Vista/XP, Mac OS X, and Linux. Once installed, it provides, real-time encryption, which is transparent to the user. It is capable of encrypting an entire drive, including the operating system drive to provide security prior to boot-time. It can selectively encrypt specific drives or partitions. It can create an encrypted file and mount it as a secure virtual disc. It can also encrypt portable storage devices, such as USB flash drives or hard drives. This exhibit will demonstrate the non-destructive installation of TrueCrypt in common usage scenarios.

Chen, J, Lakhani, P, Boonn, W, Kim, W, Avoiding Jail-time and HIPPA Violations with Portable Computers: Using Freely Available, Open-Source, Cross-Platform Software to Secure Data.  Radiological Society of North America 2009 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, November 29 - December 4, 2009 ,Chicago IL. http://archive.rsna.org/2009/8013460.html