"Has AES-256" is not an answer: three questions to ask before trusting SSD hardware encryption

A spec sheet that says "AES-256" tells you which cipher a drive can use. It doesn't tell you who holds the keys, whether locking is actually switched on, or whether your OS can drive it.

Before relying on self-encrypting SSDs in a fleet, split the claim into three checks:

1. Does the controller encrypt data at all? Look for documentation of the exact model, not the product family page.
2. What controls access? A TCG Opal reference suggests standard security management, but it is not a certification and doesn't prove encryption is active.
3. Can your stack activate it? Firmware, OS and tooling have to line up; BitLocker with hardware encryption, for example, depends on Opal plus eDrive (IEEE-1667) support.

Also worth remembering: software encryption (BitLocker, FileVault) versus drive-side encryption describes where the work happens, not which one is automatically safer or faster.

The full BytePreview guide walks through what to check in the specs and how to verify it on a real machine:
https://www.bytepreview.com/en/articulos/technical-guide-verifying-aes-256-hardware-encryption-in-ssds-for-2026?utm_source=dev&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bytepreview