Computer Critics has always reviewed products. So when the guys over at GoTrusted.com asked us to review their Internet security service we were a bit hesitant. However, in light of what has been happening lately in the news, such as telcos handing over customer data to the NSA and keeping quiet about it, we thought it would be a great opportunity for us to look at a service that promises to protect your privacy as well as your data.
First it is important to explain what the GoTrusted service actually does. When you are connected to the Internet at work, all the traffic you generate through the Internet first travels through your corporate network. Everything from the sites you visit to the Instant Messages you send and receive are transmitted via plain text and easily readable by your network administrator or corporate security personnel. There are examples of how this affects people every day in the media. Some say it is a security issue, others see it as a privacy issue. Some have found themselves being severely disciplined or fired for doing something as innocent as clicking on a link in an email at work that inadvertently takes them to a questionable website.
The GoTrusted service establishes a 128-bit encrypted secure tunnel between your computer and the GoTrusted.com servers. The traffic then passes out to the Internet from there. The Internet traffic still initially goes through your corporate network, but it is encrypted. Nobody can see what you are sending or receiving.
In addition to being a very practical tool for protecting yourself and your privacy in the workplace, GoTrusted is clientless. This means you can use it on virtually any computer without installing any software. For example, say you are out of town and need to access your email. You can log onto the service from any cybercafé and start communicating securely in seconds without having to worry about any shady characters that might run the network you are using.
Besides individual privacy issues the GoTrusted service also serves a useful function for both small and large companies that are interested in protecting their sensitive corporate data. For example, say you run a small business with 5 employees that travel frequently with laptops. When these employees use Internet hotspots in airports, hotels, tradeshows, coffee shops or bookstores the data they send and receive can be easily accessed by anyone on that same network. The guy sitting next to you at Starbucks could be reading your messages as you send them. If your employees travel to the offices of a competitor, partner or client and connect to the Internet via the local network, any data they send or receive can be retrieved and used against your company.
In other words, security is a big deal folks. What is great about GoTrusted is that they make it so simple to secure your data. All you do is go to GoTrusted.com, log in, and you’re protected. All your Internet applications start sending and receiving data through the encrypted tunnel. There’s no software to download, no hardware to fiddle with, and best of all, you don’t have to configure a single Internet application to use the service.
Individual plans are $9.99 per month with a 10% discount if you pay for a year in advance. For corporate clients GoTrusted offers special plans with even deeper discounts and additional features such as virus and spyware protection. They also offer a free 7-day trial to new users. For the peace of mind this service offers, I think the price is well worth it. I’m signing up for my account today! You should too.
