Let's Encrypt!

Wednesday, 19 Apr, 2017

I make an effort to encrypt where I can, and in my opinion, you should, too.

Why? If I want to reveal something, it’s possibly your business. If I must reveal something, then it’s someone’s business. Otherwise, it’s none of your business, unless I choose to make it so.

Here are a few things you can consider:

Encrypt websites with “Let’s Encrypt” - if you run a website, especially one that collects any personal information or creates a cookie, enable SSL. You can do this with “Let’s Encrypt” for free (but, do donate if you use it), and in a user-friendly manner compared to the alternatives.

Use a Password Manager - like Zetetic’s Codebook. It keeps a heavily encrypted vault file that you enter using a master password. From inside, you can access private information like bank accounts, credit cards, or website passwords. It lets you do the right thing, and have different, complex passwords for each website.

Install HTTPS Everywhere - from the EFF. This plugin for Chrome, Firefox, Opera, forces your browser to switch to the SSL-encrypted version of websites you visit. In other words, if a https:// variant of the site you’re visiting exists, it switches you to it.

Choose Encryption - when there is an option. Encrypt hard drive? Yes. Encrypt iTunes backup? Yes. Just make sure to store the key, passphrase or secret securely (in your Codebook, of course!), so that you can unencrypt if needed. The point to doing this is, if your laptop or device gets stolen, you’re making it really, really hard to get the information out, without the secret information to decrypt.

These practices are even more important these days, considering how the US Gov’t is chipping away at privacy protections.

🔒 ⛔ 😄

More info