IT security and data protection firm Sophos has announced a new addition to its Sophos data protection family, Sophos SafeGuard Disk Encryption for Mac, which protects against data breaches of confidential and private information on MacBooks and Macs.

Customers now have the ability to easily protect and enforce data protection on a single MacBook or a mix of tens of thousands of Macs and Windows PCs and laptops, according to the folks at Sophos. SafeGuard Disk Encryption for Mac provides sector-based encryption of disk volumes, including the Mac OS boot volume and data volumes, and strong, standardized AES 256-bit encryption algorithm, and optimized encryption/decryption algorithms.

Sophos’s power-on user authentication (POA) is designed to ensure that only authorized users are allowed access to encrypted data and multi-user POA provides security for shared Macs. Encrypted data can't be accessed even if hard drives are removed from Macs -- only authorized users or security administrators can open and view.

Authorized administrators can y view the status via the Mac-friendly graphical interface and authorized access can be automated via a scripting command for larger organizations. Sophos provides administrators with comprehensive logs detailing encryption status and user interactions during the POA process, including failed log-on attempts.

Sophos SafeGuard Disk Encryption for Mac purportedly deploys with a very small client installation file and is compatible with any existing Mac system administration tools, including Apple Remote Desktop. It also offers administration options for local or remote administration with easy-to-implement scripting commands.

You can download a free trial of Sophos SafeGuard Disk Encryption for Mac at http://www.sophos.com/products/enterprise/encryption/disk-encryption-for... . You'll have to contact Sophos for pricing options.