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Our Blogs Apexing the Linux learning curve Data encryption and Ubuntu, Part II
Our Blogs Apexing the Linux learning curve Data encryption and Ubuntu, Part II | Data encryption and Ubuntu, Part II |
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| Apexing the Linux learning curve - Linux for Learners | |
| by Hamish Taylor | |
| Thursday, 27 November 2008 | |
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But sometimes you have to share files and you still don't want just anyone to be able to see them. For example, when I travel I have copies of my passport, travel insurance, drivers licence and other information. To protect myself against potential identity theft, I encrypt these files. Maybe you are a medical researcher and have confidential patient information you need to protect, or a financial planner or mortgage broker wanting to protect client data, or a journalist or secret intelligence agent wanting to protect sources, or an engineer working on an upcoming technology that can't be exposed to the market just yet, or... There are lots of perfectly legitimate reasons why people want to encrypt and protect their data. Can you think of examples relevant to you? I could put my travel files into that Private directory on my laptop and if I lost my laptop I'd be confident that no-one can access my files (unless they can guess my password). However, neither can I! So, I tend to share these files around as a backup. When I encrypt the files, I am able to leave these files pretty much anywhere: - I can upload them to free storage sites on the Internet and know that I can retrieve them if I need to - I'm able to burn them to CD or copy them onto USB sticks and leave them on trains, in taxis or whatever and not have to worry - I can email them to a friend for safe keeping, knowing that if I need them, I can ask the friend to email them back - Or I can email them to myself on GMail, Yahoo! or Hotmail, knowing that I can access that from any Internet connection So, now we know why we encrypt files, how do we encrypt files? |
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