Control of External Devices and Removable Media
Restricting USB and peripherals as a risk vector
Control of external devices and removable media regulates which peripherals, such as USB drives, external disks or smartphones connected by cable, can be used on corporate devices and under what conditions, through policies ranging from total blocking to mandatory encryption and automatic scanning before access is allowed. This matters in practice because removable media are still an effective infection vector, able to introduce malware without going through email or web browsing, which usually concentrate most of an organization's security controls. A classic case is the attack known as a USB drop, where infected drives are left in common areas of a company in the hope that a curious employee will plug one into their device, a risk that proper external device control neutralizes by blocking the automatic execution of content from unauthorized media.