The automated teller machines are hardly new on the market, but nobody thought to port their security system to hard drives enclosures. Well, at least, until now, because a Japanese hard-disk enclosure manufacturer has launched a portable hard drive that features a built-in ATM-like keypad.

The EZSecu EZ850 is a 2.5-inch hard-disk drive enclosure that can connect to the computer via a spare USB 2.0 port. It can host a single SATA-enabled hard-disk drive, but it is more of a pocket version of a bank safe than a simple HDD enclosure. I have told you about RFID security devices attached to HDD enclosures, and even about fingerprint readers that protect the stored data, but a PIN protection system is quite a novelty.

The upper part of the hard disk enclosure is occupied by a touch-screen on which users have to enter a 6-digit personal identification number. The touch-screen allows only combinations of numbers from 0 through 9. If the combination is wrong, or the PIN code has not been inserted at all, the drive won't be recognized.

The drive is produced by Digital Cowboy, and is almost identical to another device of its kind produced by South Korea-based company Iotek. The PIN-enabled hard-disk drive is estimated to cost $140, but its availability is currently limited to the Japanese market only.

The innovative system is, however poorly documented, so the company does not specify whether the PIN protection can be worked around by removing the drive from the enclosure and reading directly from it or not. Users might argue the simplicity of using PIN keys over RFID transponders or even fingerprint authentication systems. However, PIN keys can be noted down in plain view, or even disclosed, which would expose the data on the disk.