Encrypting Your Device Using BitLocker on Windows That said, most of us are only storing and transporting this kind of information for a reason, so we’re not carrying such sensitive data on a daily basis, which means that encryption isn’t necessary for every situation.Īs we’ve already covered, it’s really only for when you’re carrying documents that could present a considerable personal security threat if the drive were to be misplaced, or your host device, such as a tablet or laptop, has been breached by malware, and the data needs to moved. No one wants to be in that situation, whether it’s data from a respected institution such as NUI Galway, or even your own personal data. Such incidents are often reported in the news, and only last year an unencrypted USB device containing the personal details of up to 900 university students was lost by a leading Irish university. You know the story: someone with significant power loses a USB device, containing information that could be available for anyone to see if they were to stumble across it.

For instance, if you use a USB stick to store financial data, photographs or any other personal documents, that someone could use against you, like trying to steal your identity, then it’s of the utmost importance that you encrypt this data. Someone may encrypt files to prevent certain information from being seen.

Which is usually only the case when someone is using a certain kind of software or has some idea of what your chosen password is. When you encrypt your files, you’re essentially making them unreadable, unless someone can unscramble them. It requires technical skills and knowledge to penetrate the information of an encrypted device. That said, hacking and exposing a devices’ weaknesses is not a simple task that can be performed by just anyone. It’s important to note though, that USBs, along with just about any device, are not 100% impenetrable even after encryption.

There are a couple of different ways to encrypt your device, depending on what operating system your host device is using, be it Windows or a macOS – in this blog we’ll cover the different ways to encrypt your USB on both devices. If you deposit sensitive data on your USB stick, then you must consider encryption to secure your information in the event of a security breach or physical loss.

Encrypt usb stick