So there was a bit of internet shock earlier this summer when a surprise announcement came out that the widely used encryption utility TrueCrypt was no longer being developed. Previously, our Information Security Office had recommended TrueCrypt as a tool for encrypting personal and confidential information, like human subject data. Now that TrueCrypt has been discontinued, Security Officer Adam Edwards passed along some instructions (.docx) for using an alternative (also free and open source) encryption tool, 7-Zip.
Adam warns:
**One caveat with this option is that there is no central management. This is important because if a user loses their password the data will be lost. Manual recovery procedures will need to be put in place to ensure there is alternative access in the event of an emergency. If no manual recovery procedures are put in place and the password is lost the data will be lost.**
Please contact Information Security with questions or concerns. Thanks to Adam (and Information Security Engineer Scott Finlon) for watching out for us!
