McAfee Inc. has announced that National Health Service Connecting for Health (NHS CFH) has selected solutions from McAfee to provide encryption and port control to protect data on NHS computers and devices across the NHS in England. As part of the NHS contract, McAfee Data Protection will provide 700,000 licenses for device encryption, port control, secure content encryption and mobile encryption to Trusts and Health Informatics Services (HIS) groups across the NHS.

McAfee Data Protection's solution will encrypt confidential staff and patient data, helping to safeguard the NHS from data breaches and protecting those whose data resides on NHS systems. Data will be protected on all devices such as PCs, laptops, PDAs and smartphones, content on hard drives and removable media such as CDs, DVDs and flashdrives; and computer ports to prevent unauthorised use of portable media connected to USB, serial and parallel ports.

The technology integrates with existing software deployment tools and can be deployed centrally across the network to all endpoints. The installation process is quick and effective - as soon as the device is connected to the network the technology automatically installs.

The technology is completely transparent to the end-user and does not impact productivity or require any specialised training. It also mitigates human error, thereby reducing data security threats. Its central reporting function aids compliance and the graphical presentation of information assists ICT teams in their management reporting.

"McAfee Data Protection technology closely matched our extensive requirements and at a price that represents exceptional value for the taxpayer," said Mark Ferrar from the NHS CFH. "Protecting patient data and NHS operational data against data security threats is essential. The McAfee product is an enterprise class solution that integrates with existing software deployment tools, can be deployed in both standalone and organisation-wide scenarios and meets the required stringent security standards."

"The desire for a national agreement for encryption software followed guidance to NHS organisations issued by NHS Chief Executive David Nicolson," said Jan Van Vliet, VP of Sales, McAfee Data Protection Business Unit, EMEA. "As part of the agreement, we are also working closely with our partner Trustmaque to set up a nationwide structure to offer training and implementation for NHS Trust IT managers."