Image Overwrite Option for Document Centre Multifunction Systems Brings Additional Level of Security on Copier and Printer Hard Disk Drives ROCHESTER, N.Y.- May 20, 2002-- An "electronic shredder" that permanently eliminates electronic images on digital copier and printer hard drives is an option now available on Xerox Corporation's Document Centre digital multifunction systems. The new option enables security-conscious organizations and individuals to overwrite images captured on the hard disk drives of selected digital copiers and multifunction devices. They are the industry's first networked digital multifunction systems to offer this level of protection. Based on a U.S. Department of Defense three-pass overwriting process, Xerox's Image Overwrite Security option eliminates the risk of unauthorized access to or removal of information that remains on the hard disks after copying, printing, scanning or faxing a document. A digital copier, printer, scanner or fax digitally stores an image of each document on an internal hard disk drive in the form of 0's and 1's. That pattern stays on the hard drive until it is overwritten by another document. The Image Overwrite Security option obliterates data left behind both on the system's main hard disk, where the Document Centre stores image data, and on the network controller hard disk, where network image data is received. The main disk overwrite feature can be activated by entering a code at the system's control panel, while the network controller disk overwrite occurs automatically each time the machine is powered up. "Customers in government, healthcare, financial services and the pharmaceutical industry have been demanding enhanced safety measures on their networked devices to shield personal, company and national security data. Xerox's Image Overwrite Security option lets users protect sensitive data without interrupting their normal workflow," said Gil Hatch, president , Xerox Office Systems Group. The enhanced security feature has been successfully tested at federal government sites and is available immediately on the Document Centre 460, 470, 480 and 490 multifunction systems. Xerox is obtaining certification for its Document Centre systems from the National Information Assurance Partnership (NIAP), a U.S. government initiative designed to meet the security assessment needs of both information technology developers and consumers. The standard, known as the Common Criteria (ISO 15408), has been adopted by 14 nations and is recognized worldwide as the primary measurement for IT security. Certification of Image Overwrite Security for the Document Centre products will provide information technology administrators with an independent validation of a product's information security that is fully recognized by the federal government, thus eliminating the time consuming, in-house security evaluation process normally required during the purchase of networked devices. Image Overwrite Security joins a menu of Xerox hardware options and software offered for security-conscious organizations. A removable disk drive accessory enables the removal and off-site storage of Document Centre hard disk drives, and Secure Print is a print driver feature that allows individual jobs to be held in the Document Centre print queue until the document's creator releases it by entering a personal code. Examples of secure Xerox software products include Xerox's DocuShare, a Web-based document management and repository software, and mDoc, which is corporate server software that turns wireless handheld devices into mobile document controllers. DocuShare is protected by three layers of security, starting with normal network login and authentication. DocuShare also provides its own permission controls of folders and documents, and supports Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption. mDoc is protected by authentication login as well, and has auditing services that log end-users' activities. When accessed via the wireless Web, mDoc is supported by secure Web access and SSL encryption. Pricing and Availability Image Overwrite Security will be an available option on new Xerox Document Centre systems as they are introduced. The option is immediately available for Document Centre 460, 470, 480 and 490 products at a single unit list price of $995. It may be purchased for both new and in-place equipment through the Xerox direct sales force, authorized sales agents, dealers and concessionaires.