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ace2600

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 16, 2008
71
0
Austin, Texas
Hi,

I am looking a for a free, preferably open-source app that does symmetric encryption to a file. Cross platform is a plus, but the only requirement is it needs to work with Leopard. I've been thinking about installing TrueCrypt for other encryption needs, but I'm not sure if it does basic symmetric encryption to a single file.
 
Truecrypt only creates encrypted volumes and then reads them. I use them all the time between OS X and XP. I have a portable version on my thumbdrive, and keep install apps along with the activation keys for them, in the encrypted volume. Mount them on the PC I am installing them on, and install. This works great. I have not tried the binary for Linux, but he OS X and XP versions work great. I have installed Office 2003 multiple times in this fashion, and not had any problems.
 
GPG is a cross platform, open source (GPL) - OS X, Linux, Windows et al. supporting symmetric encryption on single files e.g.:

gpg --symmetric

http://macgpg.sourceforge.net/

http://www.gpg4win.org/

And for the main site:

http://www.gnupg.org/

There are many examples if you hit Google - this may start you in the right direction:

http://www.screenage.de/blog/2008/06/19/my-package-of-the-day-gpg-for-symmetric-encryption/

And a cheat sheet...

http://charleslockhart.com/technical/gpg-cs.html

There are a slew of plugins for most popular mail clients, browsers and many other apps too...

Hope this helps!
 
Thanks! I've used GPG in the past, but only for public key encryption. It looks perfect for my needs though.

Has anyone used GPGMail for Apple Mail? Are there any alternatives (current stable version does not work with Leopard)?
 
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