Encrypt external drive? - yes or no?

[SteelBlueTJ]

I am running a 2013 iMac with only a 256GB internal SSD. I just keep the OS and Apps on there. I also use a 3TB WD MyBook external for all my other files. My question is - should I encrypt the external drive? I like the peace of mind knowing my stuff is secure in the unfortunate event it is stolen, but I have also read about it hindering the performance of the drive with slower read/write speeds. I am just wondering how many of you encrypt your external drives, even if they never leave the house? If you do encrypt the drive, do you notice a difference in speeds?

 

[maflynn]

What stuff are you storing on the external drive?

If its just installers, music, and images, then I'd say no. If you storing personal data, i.e., taxes, bank account, or backups of your data, then yes.

 

[SteelBlueTJ]

What stuff are you storing on the external drive?

If its just installers, music, and images, then I'd say no. If you storing personal data, i.e., taxes, bank account, or backups of your data, then yes.

Well it's a little bit of everything. Is there an easy way to encrypt just one folder with financial stuff instead of the entire drive?

 

[ColdCase]

Dunno about specific folders but you can use disk utility to create a small encrypted disk image of whatever size you want (up to the disk size) and put the image on the external drive. Then store your private stuff in the encrypted disk image (the image would look like another external drive in the finder. Your other stuff can reside on the same drive, if you left room for them.

I didn't notice a performance difference overall, but I was just using the image for document storage.