“Free open-source disk encryption software for Windows Vista/XP, Mac OS X, and Linux”

Truecrypt has been my favorite encryption software by far for both Windows and Linux. I discovered it a few years ago and haven’t stopped using it since. It was the first encryption software I found, and after trying some others, there was no competition. It can be used by all types of users, and I recommend it for anyone who travels a lot.

I mainly use Truecrypt on my Linux workstation but it is available for Windows and OSX as well. I use encrypted drives for my backups, everything is compressed and copied to an encrypted drive periodically. I also carry this drive with me when I travel, to store photos and videos that I take along the way. If the drive were to be stolen, it would be very difficult to access the information.

Truecrypt works by encrypting your drive with your selection of encryption algorithms and allowing your to select a password to unlock the data. Truecrypt allows for multiple encryption algorithms to be used in conjunction with one another, adding that extra security. The more algorithms the more time it takes to encrypt and decrypt the data. I usually choose a couple of algorithms

Encryption will make it so that most advanced users will not be able to access the information but there is always that chance. Once you encrypt the drive, a user must have the Truecrypt software installed and also know the password that you have set for the drive. This, in most cases, is the most security you need and there is a small percentage of people who would even know where to begin with recovering the information.

This is my encryption software of choice, and I don’t think there is anything at this price that is better. Did I mention that this software is free?