EDS launches Mobile Information Protection service for agile workforces

EDS has announced a new service, Mobile Information Protection, to address the growing data protection concerns for an increasingly mobile workforce and the renewed focus on business continuity and disaster recovery.

Mobile Information Protection focuses on information distributed outside the data centre on desktops, laptops and PDAs. It extends EDS Intelligent Storage Services, the storage on-demand service launched in 2000 and extends protection to the desktop, which is often overlooked when backup policies are defined.

The significant increase in the number of mobile users - most who keep corporate data on laptops or synced to PDAs - creates significant exposure. Although some have implemented user-initiated backup policies, the backups are not performed on a regular basis and often overlook critical data.

"As employee productivity becomes even more dependent on mobile computing platforms, corporate information assets are at greater risk of loss or theft," said Sandi Scullen, global offering executive for EDS Intelligent Storage Services. "This service enables continuous backup - and more importantly, recovery on-demand - and becomes fundamental for the enterprise to protect corporate assets while also providing a vital convenience to the individual user."

"Critical corporate data left unprotected on laptops and other mobile devices should send shivers down the spines of C-level executives," said Adam Couture, principal analyst with Gartner. "Although, we all know we should backup our laptops, it is a usually a pretty low priority until it is too late. Technology that moves PC backup to an automated background activity overcomes these all too common human foibles."

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In addition to incidental loss of data, Mobile Information Protection plays a key role in business continuity and disaster recovery plans by ensuring that businesses - both large and small - arm their workforces with a comprehensive backup solution to support their business continuity strategy to handle any emergency at any time.

Although Mobile Information Protection can be used without desktop management services, it is also a compelling complement to EDS Desktop Services offering, which leads the market with more than 3.3 million desktops under management.

EDS` Mobile Information Protection is based on an innovative design, delivering a backup solution with an integrated server, storage, and software that incorporates 128-bit AES encryption and efficient single-instance store technology. The solution, which uses Connected Corporation`s DataProtector software, enables a cost-effective implementation that reduces the amount of storage capacity and bandwidth needed for backup. The reduced bandwidth is particularly important for mobile workers who may be dependent on slower telephone lines for network connectivity.

Gartner, Inc also positioned EDS in the Leaders Quadrant in its 2003 Storage Services Magic Quadrant. According to Gartner, leaders are vendors who are performing well today, have a clear vision of market direction, and are actively building competencies to sustain their leadership position in the market. According to Gartner`s survey, the North American storage outsourcing market is growing. The survey also compares the visions of leading vendors in specific market segments and the ability to execute these visions as a guide for companies that may be looking to make a purchase soon. For more information on EDS Intelligent Storage Services, please visit www.eds.com/storage.