[PCWorld]

Post your comments for How to encrypt (almost) anything here

[oldnuke69]

Just don't use the same password for MS Office applications, Acrobat files, email, and full-disk encryption, even if the password is strong. Breaking one password breaks all.

[mikeinnyc]

WARNING:
Encryption is like a GUN which can/WILL be used against you!

Unless you have the KEY triple saved your doomed if its gone.
Sadly, I learned the hard way and was never able to crack Bitlocker.
I made the mistake of saving my KEY on the C drive and a USB stick (lost) and I Fdisked the C drive for a reinstall of OS.

Pain and More Pain just Say No and GO; Unless your a Top Secret SPY invest in a USB removable Harddrive that contain your keys to the world.

Good Luck with that!

[mipakeli]

If you encrypt it pays to have at least quadruple redundancy just in case something is lost like the key. Have one copy without a key just a long nasty PW.

[Internet2k4]

Agree with TrueCrypt recommendations. Has worked well for me in various ways.

Disagree about encrypted containers in DropBox, which I only use for non-confidential files. The problem being that an encrypted (e.g. TrueCrypt or AxCrypt) container or file that is opened and modified in one device goes back to DropBox as a "conflicted copy" rather than replacing the old copy. This is a nuisance - I'm not aware of any other synchronizing service that does any better and would be glad to learn of one.

Instead, I sync my encrypted TrueCrypt container manually on the LAN, and back it up to another (non-synchronizing) online service.

[SecurePCWorld]

One aspect you didn't cover is encryption for social networks & the open web. There are solutions like scrambls.com which allow you to protect who can read what you post to open text boxes (like this one I'm typing in now), to just choose individuals or groups that can read what you type -- and that also work to encrypt files you upload to social networks or cloud storage.

Encryption certainly isn't new... but these new solutions are finally making it easy to add that layer of protection, ideally with a single solution that works wherever you share data and files online.

[infosec01]

sorry but encryption is not 100% bullet proof. A determined hacker can easily eavesdropped on your communication channel and data. Use that info to do keylogger, cryptanalysis and off-line dictionary attack. They don't necessary need your key or password to decrypt your data.

you can't rely on one security product (encryption) and think you are safe.
like Bruce Scheiner stated " security is a process and not a product"

you need to have multi-levels layers of protection, contingency and recovery plans if you are running a small business and want to protect your assets.

[dat223]

I never see a discussion about adding a password for the HD in the BIOS -- I don't mean the BIOS password for booting but the password specifically for the HD.

Also, no one seems to mention right-clicking a file, then Properties-->General Tab-->Advanced and checking "Encrypt Contents to Secure Data". A old but useful article is

http://mintywhite.co...-files-windows/

Any thoughts about these two free methods?