While the security aspects of the Android operating system have considerably improved as of late, there’s still some scope for unscrupulous people to get hold of your stored cloud files if you aren’t careful with what you do with them. To be on the safe side, we highly recommend encrypting each and every file you currently have stored across your cloud accounts – it’s easier than you might think and won’t cost you a penny.
Boxcryptor is an all-in-one encryption app that includes all the necessary features and settings to help keep your files safe in the cloud. What’s particularly pleasing about the app is that it works across a plethora of cloud accounts, so whether you’re a Dropbox, OneDrive or Google Drive user, you’ll be covered here. It’s also remarkably quick at
completing the process, something we don’t tend to find with similarly styled apps.
Use the following steps to correctly encrypt your cloud storage account and keep your files safe from outside interference.
- Add a provider: After creating a master password for your Boxcryptor account when you first open the app, you’ll be taken to the app’s home-screen. From here you’ll want to press the menu icon in the top left of the screen and select the Add Provider option from the newly opened sidemenu.
- Select an account: A list of compatible cloud accounts that can be encrypted will now be shown on the next screen. Scroll through the list until you find one that you want to start encrypting. You will then be prompted to enter both your email and password to fully connect Boxcryptor to your account.
- Manage uploads: You should find that all of your stored files will now be displayed. Users have the option to either encrypt individual files or whole folders, which is particularly useful if your account is disorganised. By default you’ll find that your files are saved in alphabetical order.
- Take a peek: In some cases you may have trouble distinguishing between certain files. For a quick preview of a file, simply press on its name within the app. Once you’ve taken a look at it, press the back button on your device to head back to the file overview screen.
- Before you encrypt: Once you’ve chosen the file you want to encrypt, press on the I icon to the right of its listing. This screen will give you a full overview of the file, as well as show you its current encryption status. To encrypt it, you’ll want to select the Share icon that’s provided.
- Want to upload? From the Share menu select the Boxcryptor option and then Encrypted Upload on the confirmation screen that follows. The file will now begin to upload; you’ll receive a notification as the process is finishing. You will then be taken back to the file’s overview screen once completed.
- Did it work? At first it can be hard to see if your file has been encrypted, but by scrolling down to the bottom of the overview screen there’s an easy way to check. Look for the Encrypted tab and make sure the lock is now closed and green, which will indicate that it has been encrypted.
- Encrypt whole account: If you head over to the settings menu within Boxcryptor you’ll find the PIN option listed. Use this option to set up an encryption PIN for your account, enabling you to stop unwarranted access to any of your linked accounts. You’ll need to enter this PIN when accessing the account yourself.
- Set a limit: The Boxcryptor app will automatically create a cache of all of your encrypted files as a secure backup if you accidentally delete them. However, you can delete this cache if you would prefer to be extra safe and free up some of your device’s internal storage.
No comments:
Post a Comment