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Once I found the Encrypt Now! button, the program's interface made sense. With modern design tools it's a snap to create a beautiful user interface that does absolutely nothing. Of course, a program's appearance may have nothing to do with its performance. The main window itself looks partially like a very old version of OS X, with a horizontally striped title bar and a round bead button in the top left corner. Other FAQs refer to problems downloading with Netscape Navigator (discontinued in 2007 after a long decline) and Netscape Communicator (dropped in 2006). The FAQ reports that the program is Y2K compliant, meaning it doesn't suffer from a kerfuffle that happened 20 years ago. But a few of the others have that ten-year-old look, too.Īdvanced Encryption Package has the rest beat as far as outmoded bits and pieces. Several of the programs in this arena look a bit dated. Somewhat Datedīefore going further, I need to say something about the program's appearance. There still was no large green Start button, but a grey Encrypt Now! button appeared, previously hidden behind the dockable Encryption panel. Then I resized the window, giving it more height. The fact that no such button showed up in the window puzzled me for a moment. I learned that all the controls I could see were there to set the parameters of the encryption action, and that to actually take action, I should press the large, green button labeled Start. I managed to launch the CHM-format help system manually. As with CryptoExpert, the Help system didn't launch when I chose Help from the menu. I gazed at all those settings for quite a while, poked at the buttons, entered passwords, all without figuring out how on earth to make the program do anything. Below the file/folder tree there are options to filter what file types are shown and define the output folder for encryption activities. Below those is a dock-able panel titled Encryption, with a number of detailed options. There are six buttons at top right: Encrypt, Decrypt, SFX (for self-extracting), ZIP, Delete, and E-mail. The main window is dominated by a file/folder tree, with a host of buttons and controls to the right and below it.
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I launched the program by tapping the Windows key and typing its name. This product's speedy installer didn't install any desktop icons on my test system. Getting Started With Advanced Encryption Package The fact that you can decrypt it with the public key proves its legitimacy. Conversely, if I want to prove to you that a document comes from me and hasn't been modified, I encrypt it with my private key. You use your private key to decrypt the file. In a PKI system, if I want to send you a file, I look up your public key and encrypt the file with it. Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) cryptography avoids that problem. If you want to share an encrypted file, you must securely transmit the key to the recipient. AxCrypt Premium also expends server resources to provide you with its encryption services.ĪES, Blowfish, and many common encryption algorithms are symmetric, meaning the same key is used to encrypt and decrypt data. For example, CertainSafe Digital Safety Deposit Box splits up your encrypted files into little pieces and stores them securely on a raft of different servers. Those that charge an ongoing fee typically do so because the product requires server-side resources. That's a common model for encryption products. But be warned-while it offers more than more feature-wise, its interface is dated, and a bit peculiar.įor a one-time fee of $49.95, you can use Advanced Encryption Package indefinitely. If you're willing to put in a bit of study, Advanced Encryption Package can further protect your privacy by encrypting your most sensitive files and folders. Your smartphone is encrypted well enough that even the FBI can't get at its contents without a huge amount of effort. Most webmail suppliers encrypt your messages. But really, encryption is all around you. If you're not familiar with the details of encryption, it may seem like an arcane art, something practiced by security geeks in the depths of the computer lab.
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Partial (There is considerable informational disclosure.)
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