Securing USB flash drive

civscuk

Apologies if this has been asked before, but can anyone tell me how to password protect my USB flash drive? I'm a bit nervous about it being placed in the wrong hands as it has got some personal information on there... thought i had lost it once already and don't want to go through that again! Any help/suggestions would be greatly received...

Regards

Civscuk

superscaper

You could encrypt it using www.truecrypt.org. The disadvantage is that you need to have administrator priviledges on any pc you use it with.

David_B_2

superscaper wrote: »

You could encrypt it using www.truecrypt.org. The disadvantage is that you need to have administrator priviledges on any pc you use it with.

I second truecrypt.

Brilliant piece of free software that I have installed on all my machines. Of course can be used to create other volumes not just on your USB pen.

I would highly recommend giving it a try.

isofa

Truecrypt is definitely one of the best tools available. Once setup it is simple to use and highly secure.

Some manufacturers also provide their own encryption and hidden partition software for USB keys, have a look on their websites.

Just for example, if you have a Kingston branded key supporting "TravelerSafe+", their software is at:

http://www.kingston.com/support/USBFLASHDRIVES/default.asp

superscaper

isofa wrote: »

Truecrypt is definitely one of the best tools available. Once setup it is simple to use and highly secure.

Some manufacturers also provide their own encryption and hidden partition software for USB keys, have a look on their websites.

I believe Corsair actually supply Truecrypt themselves on some if not all their flash drives.

civscuk

Well, i downloaded and installed TrueCrypt.. and got it working no probs... i mounted the flash drive as a device (rather than a file)... and it is now encrypted no probs...

next question is... it seems that even though i click on auto-mount, i still find i have to mount the flash drive every time i stick it in the USB drive.. is there any way of doing this automatically every time i enter the USB drive?

Also, it seems that i need TrueCrypt on the machine in order to decrypt it.. is there any way of decrypting it on another machine without having TrueCrypt on it? Or have i done this completely the wrong way round??

Cheers

Civscuk

superscaper

From truecrypt's FAQ (what you want to do is option 2 and I think you've done option 1):
Q: How can I use TrueCrypt on a USB flash drive?
A: You have two options:

1. Encrypt the entire USB flash drive. However, you will not be able run TrueCrypt from the USB flash drive.
   Note: Windows does not support multiple partitions on USB flash drives.
2. Create a TrueCrypt file container on the USB flash drive (for information on how to do so, see the chapter Beginner's Tutorial, in the TrueCrypt User Guide). If you leave enough space on the USB flash drive (choose an appropriate size for the TrueCrypt container), you will also be able to store TrueCrypt on the USB flash drive (along with the container – not in the container) and you will be able to run TrueCrypt from the USB flash drive (see also the chapter Traveller Mode in the TrueCrypt User Guide).

civscuk

Thanks very much for that... think i've got the hang of it now...

Just one thing bothering me now... am trying to set up traveller mode onto USB drive.. but even though i can select the drive, it keeps coming up "the system cannot find the path specified".... any suggestions???

Thanks very much for all your help so far.. really appreciated it..