Encryption
Encryption takes on different forms depending on the role that is being undertaken.
This page provides information on what items should be considered and what tools are available,
Generally we believe encryption is required at the following layers.
Device
On a mobile device the phone/tablet should be encrypted using the onboard encryption tool in iOS and Android. Any data on the device becomes harder to ghost without the passkey. This is available in the settings or system preferences of each of the operating systems.
VPN
When communications occur over a public network it is a good practice to encrypt your session with a VPN tunnel. (You can read more about these in an upcoming blog). A VPN tunnel sets up a tunnel between you and a distant server in another country usually, that then has the internet think that you are in the new location. This provides many advantages including getting around geo-based locking or discrimination.
Cloud Storage
Before sending personal or private information to a cloud storage device it is a good idea to encrypt it. The question is this private information or information that is going to be shared with others.
If it is private it may be best to also have it encrypted at the source that is on your mac or pc and use a hidden folder structure. That way wherever that information could be compromised is protected.
If sharing the information, it is a good idea to use your own pgp (Pretty Good Privacy) key or an application that encrypts the data for you.
This enables you to encrypt the files before sending it to the cloud, and then send the public key to any of the people who need access to the data. That way, only those people who should be able to see the information can.
Email
It is a good habit to get into to encrypt your mail before it is sent. The problem with this though is that the person you are sending the email to must also use an encryption tool. He must also get a copy of your key so that he can read your email.
Although this is only in its infancy, it is a good practice to encrypt all of your outbound email, as it is only by using it that the practice will reach critical mass and raise it to a standard practice.
Browsing
All of our browsing habits are tracked by cookies and interested third parties including marketing, data miners, and data aggregators. To see how much tracking goes on download Collusions a plug-in for Chrome and Firefox.
To secure your browsing, and to open up a whole new web experience, you should anonymise your IP and also your browser history. Some of the browsers have this with Incognito, and Private Browsing, however your IP address is still being transmitted, it is just not caching the site on your computer.
This page provides information on what items should be considered and what tools are available,
Generally we believe encryption is required at the following layers.
Device
On a mobile device the phone/tablet should be encrypted using the onboard encryption tool in iOS and Android. Any data on the device becomes harder to ghost without the passkey. This is available in the settings or system preferences of each of the operating systems.
VPN
When communications occur over a public network it is a good practice to encrypt your session with a VPN tunnel. (You can read more about these in an upcoming blog). A VPN tunnel sets up a tunnel between you and a distant server in another country usually, that then has the internet think that you are in the new location. This provides many advantages including getting around geo-based locking or discrimination.
Cloud Storage
Before sending personal or private information to a cloud storage device it is a good idea to encrypt it. The question is this private information or information that is going to be shared with others.
If it is private it may be best to also have it encrypted at the source that is on your mac or pc and use a hidden folder structure. That way wherever that information could be compromised is protected.
If sharing the information, it is a good idea to use your own pgp (Pretty Good Privacy) key or an application that encrypts the data for you.
This enables you to encrypt the files before sending it to the cloud, and then send the public key to any of the people who need access to the data. That way, only those people who should be able to see the information can.
It is a good habit to get into to encrypt your mail before it is sent. The problem with this though is that the person you are sending the email to must also use an encryption tool. He must also get a copy of your key so that he can read your email.
Although this is only in its infancy, it is a good practice to encrypt all of your outbound email, as it is only by using it that the practice will reach critical mass and raise it to a standard practice.
Browsing
All of our browsing habits are tracked by cookies and interested third parties including marketing, data miners, and data aggregators. To see how much tracking goes on download Collusions a plug-in for Chrome and Firefox.
To secure your browsing, and to open up a whole new web experience, you should anonymise your IP and also your browser history. Some of the browsers have this with Incognito, and Private Browsing, however your IP address is still being transmitted, it is just not caching the site on your computer.
Tools
- the following tools are either being used by us or we have considered using. They are all off the shelf and readily available. We have provided a link to all of the software.
Device
The tools used are available on the devices themselves under settings or system preferences
VPN
Although it is expected that your encrypted traffic is private, it has been known for users to be sent copyright letters if they have used the tunnel for torrent downloads. Clearly this means that your identity and traffic are not secret. (These VPN providers were based in the US).
Due to recent activities that we have become aware of, we are now looking for a new reliable VPN Service provider. To help in the selection of a provider, here is a great list from TorrentFreak.
For ultimate security, a TOR route provides real anonymity. (More below)
Cloud Storage
Private encryption. We use two products to manage our client side and mobile device encryption.
Espionage: Encrypts and hides the existence of the file. Only by entering the relevant espionage password and enabling the folder, will the folder become visible and accessible. Click Here
BoxCryptor: Works across all devices. Set up a BoxCryptor folder on your core device (Mac) and then any file that is dropped into that folder will be encrypted.
By placing the BoxCryptor file in your SecureCloud Folder, all of your devices will be able to sync in an encrypted format Click Here
Email
GPGTools: This provides both seamless PGP encryption integration into Apple Mail, but also enables the on demand encrypting of data, whether that is txt, a file or an image. Click Here
Browsing
TOR: This is a secure anonymous way to not only browse the net, but also gain access to "The Hidden Network" or "The Dark Net".
For a full explanation on how TOR works there is an excellent presentation by Steve Gibson from GRC.
You can find out more go to TORPROJECT. The product comes as a pack and includes Vidalia a Tor Client, and Tor Browser which is a firefox derivative.
For your mobile device, iOS supports browsing the TOR network through a product ONIONBROWSER.
On the Android device you need to download OrBot which is the TOR application (similar to Vidalia above), and then OrWeb which is the client browser
- the following tools are either being used by us or we have considered using. They are all off the shelf and readily available. We have provided a link to all of the software.
Device
The tools used are available on the devices themselves under settings or system preferences
VPN
Although it is expected that your encrypted traffic is private, it has been known for users to be sent copyright letters if they have used the tunnel for torrent downloads. Clearly this means that your identity and traffic are not secret. (These VPN providers were based in the US).
Due to recent activities that we have become aware of, we are now looking for a new reliable VPN Service provider. To help in the selection of a provider, here is a great list from TorrentFreak.
For ultimate security, a TOR route provides real anonymity. (More below)
Cloud Storage
Private encryption. We use two products to manage our client side and mobile device encryption.
Espionage: Encrypts and hides the existence of the file. Only by entering the relevant espionage password and enabling the folder, will the folder become visible and accessible. Click Here
BoxCryptor: Works across all devices. Set up a BoxCryptor folder on your core device (Mac) and then any file that is dropped into that folder will be encrypted.
By placing the BoxCryptor file in your SecureCloud Folder, all of your devices will be able to sync in an encrypted format Click Here
GPGTools: This provides both seamless PGP encryption integration into Apple Mail, but also enables the on demand encrypting of data, whether that is txt, a file or an image. Click Here
Browsing
TOR: This is a secure anonymous way to not only browse the net, but also gain access to "The Hidden Network" or "The Dark Net".
For a full explanation on how TOR works there is an excellent presentation by Steve Gibson from GRC.
You can find out more go to TORPROJECT. The product comes as a pack and includes Vidalia a Tor Client, and Tor Browser which is a firefox derivative.
For your mobile device, iOS supports browsing the TOR network through a product ONIONBROWSER.
On the Android device you need to download OrBot which is the TOR application (similar to Vidalia above), and then OrWeb which is the client browser
