Posted: 10/3/2013 10:37:32 AM EDT
| Is there a way to use it (on a flash drive) without being in the administrator role? I was reading up on how to encrypt a flashdrive and it stated that it has to be run as an administrator. That can be a problem if I need the info and not on my computer. |
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If it will work depends on the privileges given to the user account, and how the flash drive is configured. There is a warning on the truecrypt page that explains why it is not a good idea though.
If you are dead set on doing it, create a container on the flash drive, and put a mobile install of truecrypt on the unencrypted drive. You can run the program from the flash drive just as you can from a host machine. Just be aware you are compromising the data and your passwords when doing so. |
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What they said. In more detail, here's a quote from the TrueCrypt page on its "portable mode":
Note: No matter what kind of software you use, as regards personal privacy in most cases, it is not secure to work with sensitive data under systems where you do not have administrator privileges, as the administrator can easily capture and copy your sensitive data, including passwords and keys. That's the basic problem. As long as someone else has admin rights on the machine, they can monitor anything you do on there. |
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Quoted: Personally I would not use any device with confidential data on a non-trusted computer. If you've got a USB drive at work with your resume and information about the job you want elsewhere on it... not good. If you are at a Red Cross help station with your insurance agent after getting rescued off the roof of your flooded house having left with your bug out bag, dog and wife and not much else, probably fine. WHAT the data is, and WHY you are encrypting it makes a big difference here. |
| You can install a bootable version of Linux on the flash drive and then include the windows, mac, and linux versions of truecrypt under the root of the drive with the encrypted file. With this set up you can boot to your clean linux system on any modern host computer and fall back to the other os clients in emergencies. A bonus is having a clean system while traveling for banking and the like. Of course this does not prevent hardware key loggers so be aware. |