Signal to noise ratio uninspiring - Seeking encryption advice

[thatguychuck]

I'm hoping to encrypt some non-data files and I'm having trouble finding a free solution, if one is available. There's a ton of information out there and it's been difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. I'm asking for your thoughts or suggestions.

What I want to do:Encrypt image files (such as a passport and other official information

Comments

[ericthemage]

I don't think I'd use Gmail for that. I'd set up a website and use FTP to store the files there after encryption and compression with ZIP and a funky password.

[agent00groovey]

Nah, there are plenty of zip password crackers available.

PGP is good, we use it at work all the time. Do they still have a free for personal use version?

Another possibility is GPG. I've never used it personally, but it's well regarded.

Security through obscurity works good for casual lookers, but a lot of applications are getting smart enough to look at the file header and determine what kind it is, extensions are relied upon less when you get outside of using Windows. If he wants to keep them safe, especially that kind of information.

[ericthemage]

That's why I mentioned setting up a site specifically for this, it's obscure if no one knows about the site. Put it in gmail, and people will know about the account.

I might even put the ZIP in an RK archive, in an ACE archive, in an ARJ, archive, etc. :)

[atdt1991]

All of this is quite true. Know your audience. Are you hiding from nosy neighbors? Professional criminals doing mass scrapes? Professional criminals looking for you, personally? The government?

I am only concerned with professional identity thieves (and so I leave little non-public identifying information on my computer) and nosy neighbors, for which the purloined letter is just fine.

If there's someone out there who wants to check the file headers of my computer, the one burgeoning with untold thousands of data files, they are welcome to be my guest. The only reason I know where anything is is because I put it there in the first place.

[agent00groovey]

I agree with that in principle. If it wasn't passport & sensitive information that would probably be fine. That definitely falls into the really bad if you lose it catagory, passport info in particular. If it were something that wouldn't compromise the identity of the person involved what you proposed would work well, I've been known to do that before... Hide porn from your parents much? ;)

[atdt1991]

*laugh* Dude, I found my "disk collection" the other day! 5 and a quarter floppies with adhesive labels over the names. I peeled one off so I could see the logo of "Sexxxy Software".

Seriously. I ordered what could only marginally be called "porn". When I was 13. I thought someone was going to catch me, and I would die.

[kevinnickerson]

The gmail is fine, and zipping is almost right (see crack comment below). Use RAR instead of zip, and it's gold.