Trusted Platform Module ?

Well as I eagerly wait the arrival of my first laptop (S7020D), I read on the Fujitsu's website and I quote from them:

"At Fujitsu, we strive to provide our customers with the latest in mobile computing technology. On our popular Fujitsu LifeBook S7000/7000D notebooks, we have included Trusted Platform Module (TPM) technology. TPM is the latest security technology in data protection. TPM is a very powerful tool, and is considered the most advanced and sophisticated data protection technology available. It consists of a hardware module, drivers, and applications.

The hardware module is pre-installed in the LifeBook S7000/7000D notebooks, while the drivers and applications are on a CD, which was not included with the system at the time of shipping. Should you decide to activate
the TPM function, please call our Fujitsu Service and Support group at 1-800-8Fujitsu (800-838-5487), and we will ship you the TPM drivers and applications CD.

We strongly advise you to understand the TPM technology (there?s a comprehensive help file on the CD) and follow the installation instructions; especially important is the information on creating an emergency recovery back-up.

What's TPM? I tried to find info on it but really couldn't figure it out. It sounds like a powerful bomb or something if Fujitsu won't send you the drivers or activate it unless you call them? Can someone break it down for me? Thanks
-Mike

 

If I had to guess I would say the applications that are involved with the finger print scanner and authentication. But that is just a guess.

 

http://www.techworld.com/storage/features/index.cfm?featureID=1777

 

Thanks for the link zazonz, basically its a "key storer" for encrypted files. I wonder why Fujitsu doesnt send you the drivers unless you specifically ask for them?

 

I think there was a post on this a while back about someone getting the keys. They run together a bit. Might want to look for that. Could send Fujitsu a note, they'll know for sure.

 

The TPM is part of trusted computing groups (TCG) specification, and it's much more than just an encrypted storage. It also includes means for identification of motherboard/platform/system/owner/user - based on different keys of TCG model. The opponents of the TCG platform say that it poses several privacy concerns, and also fear of censorship plays a great role in the opponents' opinions.

I guess the reason for this more complicated activation process is that Fujitsu wants the customer to be aware of the features and also in control when activating the system. Some might install the TPM features almost automatically if they came with the laptop. That suggestion to read the documentation shows this also.

TCG can be found at:
http://www.trustedcomputinggroup.org

If you want an opinion from the ANTI-TCG/TCPA/whatever folks, one can be found at:
http://www.againsttcpa.com/tcpa-faq-en.html

 

Thanks for the link and the articles atha. It's good to know, and you're right if they threw in the software drivers, people like myself would be installing it without knowing the positive points and the negative ones. Some may say its for privacy and some may say it takes away your privacy, I guess we need to decide individually...