How to Encrypt your Hard Drive for FREE - TruCrypt

If you already own the Ultimate or Enterprise editions of Windows Vista or Windows 7 you have the option of implementing Windows BitLocker to fully encrypt your hard drives. With "whole drive encryption" your information is useless to those who want to steal your data by stealing your hard drive and/or the computer attached to it. This creates a huge deterrent for those who may be hoping to access many of the victim�s private details and perhaps selling them to a nefarious broker for purposes of identity theft.

If you do not own either the Ultimate or Enterprise editions of the Vista or Windows 7 operating systems, don't fret, as there is anther very potent and free alternative.

By visiting the TrueCrypt official website , you can get your hands on the feature-rich alternative that is completely free. No hassle. No limitations. TrueCrypt delivers a commercial caliber product with no cost to you, as advertised. Through various links on their website, the makers of TrueCrypt present their visitors with an informal, yet illuminating education to their product and principles of whole drive encryption. They also offer tutorials with screen-shots to walk you through installations and configuration.

TrueCrypt will do some things that BitLocker won�t do, such as, create hidden data partitions and creating a dummy operating on that hidden data partition. The user can have two operating systems at his or her disposal, if you so desire. The features of TrueCrypt definitely suit those who have a need for privacy. But, why go through the trouble? What�s the risk? Where are the benefits?

The answers to these questions depend on the nature of the user. What type of user are you? Are you a company executive or perhaps you have a habit of taking your work home? Do you have a laptop? If so, is your laptop your primary computer? Would your financial interests be at risk if your computer was lost or stolen? Would your personal life be in shambles if there was a data-leak which exposed your personal habits? Are you someone who lives a lifestyle which requires a high-degree of privacy? Do you travel a lot for either business or pleasure?

For those with laptops, I consider this an absolute no-brainer. TrueCrypt brings a marginal decrease in overall system performance. Unless you�re a high-end gamer who needs every CPU cycle dedicated to your frag count, there isn�t much of a reason not to use this product. For most of us, there is a low probability that we will encounter theft of a computer, however, most of us do know of someone who has experienced something of that nature. Too many of us carry the mindset of �Security is for someone else. I�m ok .� Be purposively active in the safety and integrity of your data and systems. It�s often a thankless job but we all have to do it.

For those with laptops, I consider this an absolute no-brainer. TrueCrypt brings a marginal decrease in overall system performance. Unless you�re a high-end gamer who needs every CPU cycle dedicated to your frag count, there isn�t much of a reason not to use this product. For most of us, there is a low probability that we will encounter theft of a computer, however, most of us do know of someone who has experienced something of that nature. Too many of us carry the mindset of �Security is for someone else. I�m ok .� Be purposively active in the safety and integrity of your data and systems. It�s often a thankless job but we all have to do it.

TrueCrypt will not protect you from the results of bad-mouse clicks which lead to malware infecting your system. If you leave your computer logged on and unlocked, TrueCrypt cannot enforce operating system security to protect your files and folders. Once you boot and authenticate to TrueCrypt, your file system is now as accessible as you configured it.