CyberNotes: Encrypt, Backup, and Recover Files on a USB Drive

Aug 12

CyberNotes: Encrypt, Backup, and Recover Files on a USB Drive

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Time Saving Tuesday

swiss usb.png In this day and age almost everyone has a USB drive that they use to transport data, and if you’re like me you probably have more than one. I use one drive for carrying documents when needed, another that has helpful apps (antivirus, etc…) for fixing other people’s computers, and one to backup important files from my computer.

Once you become a USB drive owner you need to start thinking about tools that can help make the device even more useful, and also ways to protect the data you have on it. If you use the USB drive a lot you also need to consider backing up the data because they are very susceptible to failures… I’ve had two USB drives fail on me over the last few years.

That’s what we’re here for. Today we’ll talk about ways to encrypt, backup, and recover files on your USB drive.

–Encrypt a USB Drive–

There’s a good chance that you carry your USB drives around on a keychain, in a pocket, or in a purse/bag. Heck, I’m sure most of us have at least started to walk away from a computer before realizing that you had plugged in a USB drive (especially when you have to plug them into the back of a computer). Much like a wallet we’re prone to lose or forget them, and that could possibly put some valuable information into the hands of someone else.

The best solution is to encrypt the drive using free software like TrueCrypt. With it you can encrypt your entire USB drive in real-time without ever thinking twice about it. It has several different encryption algorithms that you can choose from, and works on Windows, Mac, and Linux. It’s a must-have app for anyone needing to protect the data on their USB drive.