TrueCrypt Encrypted File Storage

Found in

File encryption, encoding, secure data storage, and related security tools.

Secure File Storage

Many files and documents contain sensitive information or personal data that you wouldn't leave on your coffee table. But on your computer, many of these private documents are saved to the hard drive in clear, unencrypted form.

Not only can anyone with physical access to your PC view these files; malware, viruses and filesharing tools can even make these personal documents available over the Internet for everyone in the world to view and download. It is no wonder that identity theft continues to grow—many users do nothing to protect their private information.

Like a Locked File Cabinet

TrueCrypt is sort of like a file cabinet that you can lock when you're away. When you're ready to open it, you enter your password and the encrypted contents appear in a new window, allowing you to drag-and-drop files into the encrypted area (called a volume) as though it were a regular folder. Encryption takes place transparently, and is completed "on-the-fly," so you won't have to worry about explicitly handling each file—just put it in the secure volume, and it's safe. When you're finished accessing the encrypted area, you simply close it and the files are locked again.

Volumes and Mounting Explained

TrueCrypt has a great wizard-like interface that holds your hand as you learn about file encryption. New users need no experience or understanding of the underlying technology to use the program. However, a basic understanding of the terminology is helpful: a volume is basically an encrypted file on your hard drive that is treated like a removable (USB) storage drive. Because it is treated like a hard drive by the system, its use is transparent—you can drag, drop, save, copy, move, rename and otherwise use it just like a regular folder. Another term TrueCrypt uses is mount and dismount, which means to open and close the encrypted volume. To open the encrypted volume, you mount it. To close it, you dismount it. Obviously you should always dismount an encrypted volume as soon as you're done accessing it; to not do so is akin to leaving the key in your file cabinet while you're out to lunch.

What We'd Change

Not much! The underlying technology performs well, and the interface is nice (despite a dizzying list of file menu options). While TrueCrypt is open source, it is made available under its own license terms. We'd like to see it under the GPL or BSD license, to provide the bright future that comes with endorsing or contributing to a project that is not OSI-approved. While we realize that licensing is unimportant to most end-users, it is critical to the open source community.