Erie startup Blacksquare Technologies launching Enigma file-encryption device

Erie startup Blacksquare Technologies LLC will launch its USB-compatible file-encryption device next week, including in 25 Micro Center retail stores across the country.

The Enigma will be sold online on Amazon.com and BestBuy.com in addition to Micro Center’s website. The nearest Micro Center store where the device will be sold is in Highlands Ranch.

The launch is the culmination of nearly five years of design and production efforts led by founder and chief executive Bob Fleming, who co-founded online advertising platform TruEffect in 2002. And it comes at a time when people are ever more concerned about protecting their data, both at work and at home.

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“It’s sort of been a long and winding road,” Fleming said. “Luckily for us the time is right to offer a product like this.”

Enigma, which will retail for $129 for the consumer model and $199 for the enterprise model, allows users to easily encrypt files they store on their computers and in the cloud or that they send in emails. The device plugs into the USB drive on any computer and acts as a key management tool. If files on a computer are encrypted with Enigma, they can’t be accessed without the Enigma being plugged in and the password to those files.

While the initial target market is laptop computers, Fleming said he’s hoping profits from initial sales can help fuel Enigma versions for iOS and Android mobile devices.

Blacksquare, which has three employees and is run out of Fleming’s home, is having the Enigma manufactured in Taiwan. Fleming said the initial production run was 2,500 units, with all packaging and distribution being done by Blacksquare.

Blacksquare already has the necessary certification to sell into government and military markets, and Fleming said he’s meeting Friday with a potential reseller that could help get Enigma in front of enterprise customers and businesses.

Blacksquare recently joined the Innosphere incubator based in Fort Collins to gain access to business mentors, help with financial modeling and assistance in raising outside capital.

Fleming had been working to raise an early round of funding over the past several months. But when funding proved tough to come by, he and his wife decided to fund the initial production themselves. Fleming said they’ve spent between $250,000 and $500,000 on getting the company going so far.

Fleming said Blacksquare has made several improvements to the software and usability of the Enigma over the past few months, and said that if the device sells and keeps improving he’s confident about the pursuit of outside capital down the road.

“It’s about making sure that it works and that it’s simple and easy to use and people (understand) it right away,” Fleming said.