Versatility. To work, you do not need to install any software, just plug in a USB flash drive, enter a password and you can work. And it doesn't matter what you have operating system, you can work with Mac OS, Windows or Linux. For a computer, this is a regular flash drive.
Reliability. All data is stored in encrypted form, AES encryption algorithm with a key length of 256 bits, on this moment this is the most secure encryption algorithm used by the military departments of NATO countries. And if you suddenly lose this flash drive, then no one will be able to read data from it, and if you try to enter the password several times, all data will simply be erased.
And if you are forced to enter a password to take possession of the data, you can enter a “duress login password” and all data will be instantly destroyed.
Convenience. An encrypted flash drive is convenient to use, the password entry panel is located right on the case itself, and the panel has both letters and numbers and you can come up with any password.
Compactness, the size of encrypted flash drives is not much larger than a regular flash drive, and the weight does not exceed 100 grams. Moreover, slightly increased dimensions will not allow it to be lost so easily.
Price. Flash drives with hardware encryption cost quite a bit big money, and the price for them does not depend on the brand, but on the quality of the components. This is due to the fact that the encryption process slows down the work, and in order for the flash drive not to “slow down”, it is necessary to use high-speed microcircuits.
On the regular flash drive several memory chips, and manufacturers, in order to reduce the cost, usually put the first chip fast and expensive, and all the others are slow and cheap, this is easily checked if you copy it to a flash drive and back very big file. At first, the copying speed will be fast, and then it will drop sharply.
For the production of flash drives with hardware encryption, only fast memory chips are used.
Encrypted external hard drive.
The principle of operation for external drives with encryption is no different from encrypted flash drives. Inside is the usual HDD 2.5" for compact devices with 500 or 100 GB or 3.5" for 1 to 3 TB.
The data is encrypted by hardware, to access it you need to enter a pin code on the disk panel. Additionally, such devices are equipped with a function that prevents attempts to open the hard drive. If this happens, all data is instantly destroyed.
Encrypted external hard drives differ not only in the amount of stored data, from 500 GB to 3 TB, in the size and weight of the device. But also additional features security, for example, disks with the DT index have a case opening sensor that is triggered if they try to physically open the disk, and data will be completely destroyed.
Often we have to use removable media to store personal files or valuable information. For these purposes, you can buy a USB flash drive with a keyboard for a pin code or a fingerprint scanner. But such a pleasure is not cheap, so it’s easier to resort to software methods for setting a password on a USB flash drive, which we’ll talk about later.
To set a password on a portable drive, you can use one of the following utilities:
- Rohos MiniDrive;
- USB Flash Security;
- TrueCrypt;
- bitlocker.
Perhaps not all options are suitable for your flash drive, so it's best to try a few of them before giving up trying to complete the task.
Method 1: Rohos Mini Drive
This utility is free and easy to use. It will not password protect the entire drive, but only a certain section of it.
To use this program, do the following:
By the way, with Rohos Mini Drive you can put a password on a folder and on some applications. The procedure will be exactly the same as described above, but all actions are performed with a separate folder or shortcut.
Method 2: USB Flash Security
This utility in a few clicks will allow you to password protect all files on a flash drive. To download free version, on the official website, you must click the button Download free edition.
And to take advantage of the ability of this software to set passwords on flash drives, do the following:
Now you can again dump the files that you previously transferred to your computer to the USB drive. When you re-insert it, it will be password protected again, and it does not matter if this program is installed on this computer or not.
Method 3: TrueCrypt
The program is very functional, perhaps it has the largest number of functions among all the software samples presented in our review. If you wish, you can password-protect not only a flash drive, but also an entire hard drive. But before doing anything, download it to your computer.
Using the program looks like this:
- Run the program and click the button "Create Volume".
- Check "Encrypt non-system partition/disk" and press "Further".
- In our case, it will be enough to create "Regular Volume". Click "Further".
- Select your flash drive and click "Further".
- If choose "Create and format an encrypted volume", then all data on the media will be deleted, but the volume will be created faster. And if you choose "Encrypt partition in place", the data will be saved, but the procedure will take longer. Once you've made your choice, click "Further".
- AT "Encryption settings" it's better to leave everything as default and just click "Further". Do it.
- Verify that the indicated media size is correct, and then press "Further".
- Enter and confirm your password. Click "Further". We also recommend that you specify a key file that can help you recover data if you forget your password.
- Specify your preferred file system and press "Place".
- Confirm the action by clicking the button "Yes" in the next window.
- When the procedure is finished, press "Exit".
- Your flash drive will look like the photo below. This also means that the procedure was completed successfully.
- You don't need to touch her. The exception is when encryption is no longer required. To access the created volume, click "Automount" in the main window of the program.
- Enter your password and click "OK".
- In the list hard drives can now be found new disk, which will be available if you insert a USB flash drive and run the same automount. After completing the usage procedure, press the button "Unmount" and you can remove the media.
This method may seem complicated, but experts confidently say that there is nothing more reliable than it.
The use of flash drives for storing information is gaining more and more popularity, because they have a number of undeniable advantages before obsolete CDs and DVD discs. The flash drive does not take up much space, is easy to use and has a fairly large amount of memory. That is why the question: how to put a password on a USB flash drive is relevant today. After all, it can store personal data, important documents and, in general, any other information that you would not want to show to other people.
In the article I will tell you how to put a password on a USB flash drive using the built-in BitLocker program, or using a free USB program safeguard.
bitlocker
You can set a password on a USB flash drive using the built-in Windows tools. For this, the BitLocker program is used. Go to the "My Computer" folder and click right click mouse on the flash drive on which we will set the password. Now in context menu select item "Turn on BitLocker".
If you did not find this item in the context menu, it does not matter. We go "Start" - "Control Panel".
In the right upper corner select "View" - "Category". Next follow the link "System and safety".
In the following list, select the item "BitLocker Drive Encryption".
We select the disk partition that corresponds to the flash drive, I have this (G :), and click on the button opposite it "Turn on BitLocker".
In the window that opens, check the box next to the item "Use password to unlock drive". Next, enter the invented password, the length of which must be at least 8 characters, otherwise the program will not let you go further, and click "Next".
In the next window, the program offers to save the key to restore the disk, this is in case you forget the password. Choose an item "Save the recovery key in a file" and select a location on the computer where it will be stored. It is better that it be a folder where they go least often. Click "Next".
During encryption, do not remove the flash drive. My 1 GB flash drive was half full and the encryption took 3 minutes. Therefore, if the volume of your flash drive is larger, be prepared that the process will take a little time.
Now, the flash drive is password protected. Each time you turn it on to your computer, a golden lock will be displayed next to the disk. We open the flash drive and see that the BitLocker program asks for a password. Enter it and click "Unblock". When the flash drive is unlocked, a silver lock will be displayed next to it in the "My Computer" folder.
If you want to delete or change the password on the flash drive, right-click on it and select from the context menu « BitLocker Management» . The following window appears, in which you can perform several necessary actions.
USB Safeguard
The USB Safeguard program allows you to set a password on a flash drive. Its clear functionality is suitable for both advanced and novice users. You can download USB Safeguard from the official website: http://www.usbsafeguard.com/download.html. You will be offered two versions to download. The first is free, suitable for those who have a flash drive up to 2 GB. The second - paid, allows you to set a password on a USB flash drive, the volume of which does not exceed 16 terabytes.
I will install the first - free - version. I click on the "Download now" button and save the installation file.
Now copy the downloaded installation file to the root of the flash drive and run it from the flash drive. The installation of the program is carried out as usual: we constantly press "Next", then "Finish". Considering that most flash drives are in FAT format, during the installation process the program will offer to format it in NTFS - we agree. Please note that when formatting, all files from the USB flash drive will be deleted, so it is better to copy everything to your computer in advance.
In the next window, you need to enter the password for the flash drive. We invent it, enter it, confirm it, in the last field you can enter a hint, you will see it if you forget the password. Click "OK".
Now remove the flash drive and insert it back into the computer. Open it and run the file "USBSafeguard".
That is, the program creates another protected file on the flash drive. virtual disk Z:. The volume of this disk is the same as the volume of the flash drive. When writing a file to the Z: drive, the space on the flash drive will also decrease.
Files to which you do not want to protect access, just copy directly to a USB flash drive: in my case, this is the G: drive. If you want the file to be protected, copy it to the Z: drive.
Thus, when you connect a flash drive to a computer, you will get access to open files on her. But in order to open password-protected files, you will need to run the USBSafeguard program and enter the password. Only after that you will have access to the protected disk Z:.
Now you can put the password on the flash drive. Just choose one of the described methods and I'm sure everything will work out and your personal files and documents will be protected.
Instruction
Before transferring personal data and passwords to a flash drive, you should take care of the reliable protection of the media. The type of protection largely depends on what kind of information and in what form you want to protect. If you need to close just a few files from outsiders, you can use the usual WinRar archiver program. This method is well suited when you need to transfer information through third parties once and at the same time protect the transmitted data from accidental curiosity of outsiders.
To do this, you need to create a separate new folder on the flash drive into which to transfer the protected files. Then, by clicking on it with the right mouse button, select the item "Add to archive" in the drop-down context menu. In the window that opens, you need to go to the "Advanced" tab, on which there will be an option "Set password". After that, you need to enter the password twice in the proposed field and, for reliability, check the box “Encrypt file names”. The password can be sent via (SMS) or by e-mail to the final addressee. This method is not very reliable, but is convenient for one-time cases due to its simplicity.
A more serious protection option involves setting a password for the entire flash drive at once. It's over complicated method and requires the use of special software, but its high and long-term use justifies all efforts. The principle of its operation is based on the creation of an encrypted virtual disk (volume) on a flash drive, which looks like an ordinary single file until the password is entered. The big advantage of an encrypted disk is that it cannot be viewed from the outside, it is impossible to know which directories are inside.
There are several programs that create virtual encrypted disks. The most convenient of them today is probably the TrueCrypt program. It can be downloaded from the manufacturer's website ( http://www.truecrypt.org/downloads). The program is in English, so it is more convenient to immediately install the crack, which can also be downloaded from the site ( http://www.truecrypt.org/localizations). It is better to install TrueCrypt initially on the computer's hard drive, and not immediately on a flash drive. The program is unpacked and installed automatically, without requiring any special settings.
After TrueCrypt is installed on the hard drive, you need to run it and insert your USB flash drive into the USB port. First of all, the flash drive will have to be formatted, so you should take care of saving the information on it in advance. After formatting, start creating a virtual drive. In the TrueCrypt program menu, select the "Create Encrypted File Container" item and then the "Normal Volume" item.
The program will ask for an address to place the volume. Select your flash drive (usually drive E) from the File menu and give the new volume a name (any name you like). The volume size should be slightly smaller than the size of the flash drive. Next, when prompted by the program, enter your password. In order not to make a mistake when re-entering the password, it is convenient to use the "Show password" option. As a result, an encrypted container in the form of a single file will be obtained on a flash drive, in which any information can be stored. After entering the password, it opens like a regular logical drive.
USB flash drives are small, portable and versatile storage devices. Flash drives are very convenient for transferring data between computers. However, due to their portability and compactness, USB sticks can be easily lost. Therefore, you need to take care of reliable data protection on the flash drive.
Unfortunately, you cannot simply set a password for the entire drive, as is the case with a smartphone or computer. For enhanced protection your files need to be encrypted. If you don't want to buy separately safe device flash memory with hardware encryption, you can use free programs to obtain a similar level of security.
In this article, we have provided several simple ways to protect files and folders on a USB flash drive.
If you need to protect only certain important documents, and you do not need to encrypt entire folders, then you can simply limit yourself to setting password protection for individual files.
Many programs, including Word and Excel, allow you to save files with a password.
For example, when the required document is opened in text editor Microsoft Word, you can go to the menu File > Details, select item Document protection and option Encrypt with a password.
It remains only to set secure password and confirm its installation. Remember to save the document and be sure to remember or write down the password.
Download the portable version of VeraCrypt and extract it to a USB drive. When you launch the application, a list of available drive letters will be displayed. Select a letter and press Create Volume
To create a virtual encrypted disk inside a file, select the option Create an encrypted file container and click Next.
In the next step, you can choose the type of volume: regular or hidden. Using a hidden volume reduces the risk of someone forcing you to reveal your password. In our example, we will create a regular volume. Next, select the location of the encrypted volume - a removable USB drive.
Set up encryption and specify the size of the volume (should not exceed the size of the USB drive). Then select the encryption and hash algorithm, you can use the default settings. Then set your volume password. In the next step, your random mouse movements will determine the cryptographic strength of the encryption.
After encryption is complete, each time you connect the USB drive to any computer, you can launch VeraCrypt hosted on it and mount the encrypted file container to access the data.
VeraCrypt supports encryption of entire partitions and storage devices.
Download VeraCrypt and install the program on your PC. When you launch the application, a list of available drive letters will be displayed. Select a letter and press Create Volume. The VeraCrypt Volume Creation Wizard will start.
To encrypt the entire USB drive, select the option Encrypt non-system partition/disk and click Next.
In the next step, you can choose the type of volume: regular or hidden. Using a hidden volume reduces the risk of someone forcing you to reveal your password.
On the next screen of the wizard, you need to select a device, i.e. our removable USB disk, and then click OK and Next.
In our example, we will create a regular volume. On the next screen of the wizard, you need to select a device, i.e. our removable USB drive, and then click "OK" and "Next".
To encrypt the entire USB drive, select Encrypt partition in place and click Next. VeraCrypt will warn you that you must have backup data - if something goes wrong during encryption, you can restore access to your files. Then select the encryption and hash algorithm, you can use the default settings. Then set your volume password. In the next step, your random mouse movements will determine the cryptographic strength of the encryption.
Then select a cleaning mode. The more rewriting cycles, the more reliable the cleaning. In the final step choose Encryption to start the encryption process.
After encryption is complete, every time you connect a USB drive to your computer, you will need to mount it with VeraCrypt in order to access your data.
Many modern archivers, including the free 7-Zip, support AES-256 encryption and file password protection.
Install 7-Zip, then right-click on a file or folder on your USB drive and select 7-Zip > Add to Archive. In the "Add to archive" window, select the archive format and set a password. Click "OK" to begin the archiving and encryption process.