Raul, I use TrueCrypt as well, for many purposes. I am considering a strategy such as you describe below so I have access to info on my iPHone. The utility that comes up when I search the app store for TrueCrypt is a utility called Disk Decipher. Is that what you are using on the iPhone? If so, how accessible is it? Thanks much.
Regards, -Len On 9/12/2012 8:43 AM, Raul A. Gallegos wrote: > Hi all, the recent thread on the tech doctor podcast concerning > 1Password has prompted me to write the following. > > First off, I don't use 1Password, so my comments might be off a bit. I > use LastPass and MyKeePass. I won't get into the details of those > password managers, but suffice it to say that I feel they are just as > good as 1Password. I simply tried those first and see no need to switch > to 1Password. So now onto the real reason why I'm writing. > > It's more about security and what you put on Dropbox and what is safe > and what isn't. > > Many people feel it's ok to put whatever on Dropbox while others only > put non-secure stuff, and still others are somewhere in between. > > What I do in regards to Dropbox is put files in it which I don't > particularly care if the Dropbox staff somehow gains access to them. I > know for a fact that Dropbox stores files on there even if you delete > them. How do I know this? I once erased a folder of 5 gb of audio and > later needed it for a friend, and so I copied it back over. It had been > about 3 months since I had deleted them from Dropbox, yet when I copied > them over again, it didn't take hours to upload and update, it only took > a few minutes? Why is that? Because Dropbox already had a copy of those > files. I also know that if you have a file which is an exact copy of > someone else's file even if you are not sharing folders with that > person, Dropbox uses the same copy. This allows them to save on disc > space over all in the big picture. For example, if I download the iTunes > setup file for Windows and put it in my installs folder of Dropbox which > I only share with 5 people, and if 100 other people across the world > also have this same file in their own private or public space of > Dropbox, then Dropbox uses that one copy rather than multiple copies. > Some might feel this is a breach of security. I personally feel it's > Dropbox using disc space wisely. > > The one thing I don't do is put a text file of credit card or social > security numbers in Dropbox just for the convenience of having access to > those from my iPhone. Call me paranoid, but that's the way it is. > Instead, what I do is use Truecrypt. Truecrypt is a program which allows > you to create a file container of any size and put stuff in it. Think of > it like a virtual usb stick. So, I have a 10 Mb Truecrypt container > called KeepOut.tc. Yes, only 10 megs in size. I have this file in my > dropbox folder and when I want to review personal text files from any of > my computers, I simply mount this small 10 meg file and it becomes its > own drive. Like drive x maybe. I can then open files, copy files, add > files, do whatever I want in my little 10 meg virtual usb stick. When > I'm done, I unmount it, that's like using safely remove hardware. The > file is updated on Dropbox and closed up and secure again. > > There is an iphone app which will open Truecrypt files and so if I want > access to this data from my iphone, then I simply do the same process > from there. > > Some would say this is too much work for security, but it's worth it to > me to take the extra seconds to open the Truecrypt file, look at it, and > then close it when I'm done. > > I do a similar thing with all the documents in my documents folder of my > netbook and my pc where I back them up onto a Truecrypt volume and that > volume lives in Dropbox. So, it's like my own backup solution. I've > written batch files to automatically open the virtual file, copy the > changed files from my documents, and then close it. So, in the end it > doesn't take much time at all. I'm not the only one who does this > because there are various people who have blogged about it and who have > shared similar doings in terms of Dropbox, backups, and security. > > Lastly, I mentioned KeePass as a password manager. This program is > available in many different platforms, iOS and Windows for example, and > can share the same database. So if I want to get access to a username > and password for something, I can use that. The password file itself is > encrypted, and so can safely live inside Dropbox where MyKeepass from > iOS can read it. > > Hope that helps, and hope you join the paranoia team. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "VIPhone" Google Group. To search the VIPhone public archive, visit http://www.mail-archive.com/viphone@googlegroups.com/. To post to this group, send email to viphone@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to viphone+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/viphone?hl=en.
