McAfee Complete Data Protection vs Microsoft BitLocker vs Symantec Endpoint Encryption comparison

Sensitive data is constantly at risk of loss, theft, and exposure. Many times, the data simply walks right out the front door on a laptop or USB device. Companies that suffer such a data loss risk serious consequences, including regulatory penalties, public disclosure, brand damage, customer distrust, and financial losses. According to a Ponemon Institute report, 7% of all corporate laptops will be lost or stolen sometime during their useful life. The rapid proliferation of mobile devices with large storage capacities and often internet access is opening up even more channels for data loss or theft, so protecting sensitive, proprietary, and personally identifiable information must be a top priority. McAfee Complete Data Protection Suites address all of these concerns and many more.

BitLocker is a full disk encryption solution that protects your data from theft, hacking, and loss. BitLocker achieves this by encrypting the entire drive that hosts your operating system and all your data. BitLocker can work on all operating systems, drives, or devices, including portable storage devices.

After BitLocker completes the data encryption, it generates a recovery key. Only those with the correct encryption key will be able to decrypt and access the encrypted files and information. Attempts to access secured data on premises or over the network will be met with either authentication prompts or error messages saying the data cannot be accessed.

BitLocker provides its users with peace of mind by improving security and reducing risks of critical data loss and intrusions.

Benefits of Microsoft BitLocker

• Comprehensive data protection: BitLocker encryption provides increased security for data throughout its lifecycle, which starts with the creation and storage of the data and ends with its removal. Encryption prevents important data from being accidentally revealed or stolen. When data is encrypted, stealing data is more difficult, and hackers are often discouraged from instigating a cyberattack.
  
  
• BitLocker is free with Microsoft Windows: Microsoft BitLocker is free to use and very easy to set up.
  
  
• Good performance: BitLocker does not make the computer slow down or freeze when in use. You are free to work on other processes with BitLocker running in the background. BitLocker’s interface is very intuitive and the process of encrypting and decrypting data is straightforward and fast.
  
  
• Prevent unauthorized data modification: BitLocker helps to keep your computing environment safe from any unauthorized changes. BitLocker regularly inspects your boot settings every time your PC is turned on. When BitLocker notices that modifications have been made to your boot environment, it forces the PC to enter recovery mode.

Reviews from Real Users

Microsoft BitLocker stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its powerful encryption capabilities and its user-friendly user interface.

An ICT operations and security manager notes, “It is free and native to the OS. We don't have to worry about upgrades or maintaining the product. You encrypt the disk, and you save the recovery key. That's it. The person puts their password in, and after that, it is up to them. If they forget their password, they have to bring it in to get it unlocked.”

Kevin C., a director at Pathfinder, writes, “Theease of use is the most valuable feature. The ability to import data to build your frontend on top of the data is very simple and very useable.”