- How-To Booklet
- 1. How to protect your computer from malware and hackers
- 2. How to protect your information from physical threats
- 3. How to create and maintain secure passwords
- 4. How to protect the sensitive files on your computer
- 5. How to recover from information loss
- 6. How to destroy sensitive information
- 7. How to keep your Internet communication private
- 8. How to remain anonymous and bypass censorship on the Internet
- Glossary
- Hands-On Guides
- avast! - anti-virus
- Spybot - anti-spyware
- Comodo Firewall
- KeePass - secure password storage
- TrueCrypt - secure file storage
- Cobian Backup
- Recuva - file recovery
- Eraser - secure file removal
- CCleaner - secure file deletion and work session wiping
- Riseup - secure email service
- Pidgin - secure instant messaging
- VaultletSuite - secure email client
- Thunderbird - secure email client
- Firefox - secure Web browser
- Tor - anonymity and circumvention
- Portable Security
4. How to protect the sensitive files on your computer
Submitted by admin on Thu, 11/20/2008 - 12:48
Unauthorised access to the information on your computer or portable storage devices can be carried out remotely, if the 'intruder' is able to read or modify your data over the Internet; or physically, if he manages to get hold of your hardware. You can protect yourself against either type of threat by improving the physical and network security of your data, as discussed in Chapter 1: How to protect your computer from malware and hackers and Chapter 2: How to protect your information from physical threats. It is always best to have several layers of defence, however, which is why you should also protect the files themselves. That way, your sensitive information is likely to remain safe even if your other security efforts prove inadequate.
There are two general approaches to the challenge of securing your data in this way. You can encrypt your files, making them unreadable to anyone but you, or you can hide them in the hope that an intruder will be unable to find your sensitive information. There are tools to help you with either approach, including a FOSS application called TrueCrypt, which can both encrypt and hide your file.
Background scenario
Claudia and Pablo work with a human rights NGO in a South American country. They have spent several months collecting testimonies from witnesses to the human rights violations that have been committed by the military in their region. If the details of who provided these testimonies were to become known, it would endanger both the courageous people who testified and members of the organisation in that region. This information is currently stored in a spreadsheet on the NGO's Windows XP computer, which is connected to the Internet. Being security conscious, Claudia has made sure to store a backup of the data on a CD, which she keeps outside the office.
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