Only a quarter of computer users bother to encrypt files and email messages and despite the availability of security freeware are leaving themselves open to data loss and identify theft, a latest survey has found.
When data protection software supplier Steganos asked consumers in the US and Britain about their security habits, it found that 78% never encrypt emails.
It said that the increasing risk of theft means that everyone, be it a home computer user or business user, needs to take responsibility for protecting data, both by encrypting current files and shredding those that are no longer needed.
A case can be made for free software that can be used as a digital vault to store serial numbers, passwords, phone numbers and other confidential data using AES 256bit encryption. A system like the LockNote secure memo pad is open source and based on the open source certified CryptoPP program library for strong encryption.
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