encrypt

If you use Gmail, but worry about your privacy--especially in the wake of Google's attack by sophisticated hackers--CNET reporter Stephen Shankland shows you how to have your cake and eat it, too.

What are the secret ingredients to a secure Gmail? A triumvirate of freeware comprised of Gnu Privacy Guard encryption, Mozilla's Thunderbird e-mail application (Windows|Mac), and an e-mail encryption plug-in called Enigmail (Windows and Mac).

Switching from open to encrypted e-mail isn't a light undertaking, and as Stephen points out, there are plenty of drawbacks and trade-offs when you swap ease-of-use for near-total privacy. Still, … Read more

Perhaps Google's announcement that Chinese cyber attackers went after human rights activists' Gmail accounts has made you skittish about just how private your own messages are on the Google e-mail service.

Well, if you want to take a significant step in keeping prying eyes away from your electronic correspondence, one good encryption technology that predates Google altogether is worth looking at. It's called public key encryption, and I'm sharing some instructions on how to get it working if you want try it.

Unfortunately, better security typically goes hand in hand with increased inconvenience. But some human rights … Read more

Shortly after Google announced the partially successful cyberattack on Gmail, the company said it will activate by default a secure network technology for its e-mail service.

Google has long offered the option to access its Web-based Gmail service by using HTTPS--a secure version of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol that Web browsers use to retrieve information from Web sites. Now it will become the norm.

"Using HTTPS helps protect data from being snooped by third parties, such as in public Wi-Fi hotspots," Gmail Engineering Director Sam Schillace, said in a Gmail blog post on Tuesday. "We initially … Read more

I know this is TLDR fodder of the highest order, but I'd like to read to you from a press release--for a security product, even. Here it goes:

The entire line of Spyrus Hydra PC USB encryption drives are invulnerable to such attacks because no password authentication values or keys are ever stored on Hydra PC devices after logoff or removal. Unlike any competing USB encryption drive, the Hydra PC reconstitutes a Master Key Encryption Key at logon using a FIPS-approved Key Derivation Function which utilizes, at a minimum, an Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman (ECDH) public/private key pair … Read more

Chances are, right now you have something on your computer that you would rather other people not see. Financial information, a diary, photographic evidence of a night of debauchery--you know what we're talking about. Fortunately for you, SafeHouse Explorer USB Flash Drive Encryption makes it easy to keep your private stuff private, on a flash drive or on your computer.

In our adventures as software reviewers, we see a lot of amateurish software, so it was a breath of fresh air when we opened SafeHouse Explorer and found a well-designed and well-explained program. The application walks first-time users through … Read more

This week brought some bad news for mobile phone users. German security expert Karsten Nohl showed how easy it is to eavesdrop on GSM-based (Global System for Mobile Communications) cell phones, including those used by AT&T and T-Mobile customers in the U.S.

Nohl, who has a doctorate in computer engineering from the University of Virginia, made headlines last year publicizing weaknesses in wireless smart card chips used in transit systems around the globe.

CNET interviewed Nohl via e-mail on Thursday about his latest work and what the implications are for the more than 3 billion GSM mobile … Read more

Iraqi insurgents have reportedly intercepted live video feeds from the U.S. military's Predator drones using a $25.95 Windows application that allows them to track the pilotless aircraft undetected.

Hackers working with Iraqi militants were able to determine which areas of the country were under surveillance by the U.S. military, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, adding that video feeds from drones in Afghanistan also appear to have been compromised.

Meanwhile, a senior Air Force officer said Wednesday that a wave of new surveillance aircraft, both manned and unmanned, were being deployed to Afghanistan to bolster "eyes in the sky" protection … Read more

If you're the type who mandates a unique password for every Web account, you've got a lot of memorizing to do. EgisTec, a data encryption and biometrics technology company, is manufacturing a fingerprint sensor that eliminates the need to type any password.

Although the Taipei, Taiwan-based company is predominantly known for its data-deletion software, Shredder, the present focus is on its fingerprint solution for cell phones, laptops, cars, and other devices that might benefit from increased personal security.

EgisTec's know-how of software and hardware production helps in the creation of technology that manufacturers can easily integrate into … Read more

An extension for Thunderbird and SeaMonkey, Enigmail is a must-use for anybody who's concerned about sending e-mail that can be read by anybody, including your Internet Service Provider. It's not intended to encrypt all of your mail, although you can certainly do that. Rather, it's best used for ensuring that even remotely sensitive e-mails don't get read by the wrong person.

It uses the OpenPGP standard to digitally sign your e-mail, and can be configured to accommodate multiple e-mail accounts. One hang up is that it's impossible with the current version to permanently decrypt e-mails, … Read more