Drawings are the lifeblood of an enterprise, especially in industries such as mechanical design, chip research and development, and military manufacturing. If a core drawing is copied, tens of millions of R&D investments will be wasted in an instant. I have worked in corporate security for 20 years, and I have seen too many bosses lose their jobs overnight because of leaked drawings. Today I won’t deal with the fictitious stuff, but will go straight to the practical stuff and explain to you anxious bosses how to actually lock the drawings into the safe.

The core code does not run naked! 6 hard-core methods for encrypting drawings. It is recommended that bosses keep an eye on them personally.

1. Deploy the Insight Eye MIT system

After twenty years in this industry, if I were to recommend only one solution, it would be to deploy a set of Insight Eye MIT System . This thing is not just about adding a password, it is a complete behavioral control system for "people" and "data", which is especially suitable for manufacturing and technology companies with many R&D personnel and frequent drawing circulation. For the customers we have served, after deploying this system, the risk of drawing leakage can be directly reduced by more than 90%.

1. Mandatory transparent encryption, drawings become waste paper once they leave the company : This is the most cruel move. When employees open design software such as CAD, SolidWorks, and Pro/E, the system automatically encrypts the drawings in the background, and the employees themselves cannot feel it at all. But as long as someone sends the drawings through WeChat, USB flash drive or email, and they are out of the company's network environment, they will be garbled when opened. Last year, there was a client whose core research and development was poached by a rival. He copied more than 300 drawings before leaving. As a result, he couldn't open the new company at all, and the other boss directly refused him a job.

2. With refined outbound management and control, partners can’t guard against you. : When dealing with downstream suppliers and Party A, it is inevitable to send out drawings. This is what many bosses are afraid of. If they don't make money, they won't be able to work, and if they do, they're afraid of being resold. The Insight Eye MIT system can generate "outbound encrypted packages". You can precisely control how many times this package can be opened on the other party's computer, how long it can be viewed, whether it can be printed, and whether it can take screenshots. Even if the other party is a pig teammate and loses the file, it will be useless for outsiders to get it.

3. Screen watermark + print traceability, so those who want to leak secrets dare not reach out : Putting an invisible or explicit watermark (employee number + time) on the employee's screen is equivalent to adding a "background monitoring" to the drawing. If anyone dares to take a picture of the screen and send it out, as soon as you get the photo and analyze the watermark, you will immediately know who did it and at what time. Printing control is even better. All printing actions must be approved. Printed drawings automatically come with a QR code. Just scan it and you will know who printed it and when.

4. Full life cycle operation records, no blind spots in post-event audits :Who saw which picture? Who modified it? Who is trying to copy to USB drive? The system records the entire process. Don’t underestimate this audit function. We have dealt with several internal disputes where employees refused to admit leaks. When we pulled up the operation log, we found that he frantically exported drawings at two o’clock in the morning a week before leaving. This is irrefutable evidence.

5. Sensitive content identification to prevent "misoperation" leakage : The system can automatically scan all file servers and employee computers of the company. Once it is found that the drawings contain keywords such as "confidential", "core algorithm", "undisclosed project", etc., it will automatically perform secondary encryption or trigger an alarm. Many leaks occur when former employees' permissions have not been taken back, and this function can provide a cover-up.

2. Hardware encryption lock (USB Key)

This method is more traditional, but it works. Equip computers at key positions with a hardware encryption lock. This USB flash drive must be inserted to open specific design software or view encrypted drawings. Remove the lock and the file will be automatically locked. The disadvantage is that the management cost is high, it is troublesome to lose the lock, and it can only control this one machine, and cannot prevent network transmission and screenshots.

3. Permission classification + cloud desktop

Put all the core drawings on the cloud desktop, and the employees' local computers are just monitors, and no drawing files can be seen or saved. Want to see drawings? You must log in to the cloud desktop through a dedicated line, and set permissions based on your position. For example, grassroots designers can only see the modules they are responsible for, and chief engineers can see the complete machine diagram. The disadvantages are high cost and heavy reliance on the network, which can be used up once the network is stuck.

4. Professional version PDF encryption and permission control

Many drawings will eventually be converted into PDF format for export or archiving. You can purchase professional PDF security tools to perform DRM protection on PDFs. Set up prohibiting printing, prohibiting modification, limiting the number of opens, and even remotely withdraw files that have been sent. This method is effective for specific scenarios, but it cannot cure the leakage of source files (CAD, SolidWorks).

5. Physical isolation gatekeeper

For secret-related units such as military industry and aerospace, the stupidest method is the most effective. The confidential network should be physically disconnected, the R&D intranet should not be connected to the Internet, all U-ports should be sealed, and incoming and outgoing data must be approved by a dedicated person to burn a CD. This method can completely cut off leakage channels, but the daily collaboration efficiency of the enterprise will drop off a cliff, so it is suitable for scenarios with extremely high confidentiality levels.

6. Document virtualization sandbox

Create a virtual "encrypted sandbox" area on employees' computers, and all core drawings can only be edited in the sandbox. The sandbox is isolated from the outside world and prohibits copying and pasting, taking screenshots, and even running unauthorized software. Once someone tries to crack the sandbox, the system will automatically lock up and alarm. This method is suitable for scenarios where the R&D environment is complex, but the boss doesn’t want to install a full encryption system.

Source of this article: Enterprise Data Security Defense Alliance, China Manufacturing CIO Association
Lead writer: Chen Guodong
Editor in charge: Zhao Liying
Last updated: March 25, 2026