Encrypting phones, computers, and files

Diana Beebe's Blog, Mermaids Don't Do Windows, Diana Beebe, science fiction, middle grade fantasy, fantasyYesterday, I talked about destroying browser history. Today, I’m talking about protecting computer files with encryption.

Before your eyes glaze over and you forget that you’re here, let me just say that encryption can be as simple as a pass code or swipe pattern that you use to lock your phone.

If you don’t lock your phone with either of those, you should. Go into your phone’s security settings to set it up. Super easy! And then you don’t end up with strange pictures on your phone when you leave it somewhere, say, in your house or at work. I know someone who takes hundreds pictures at a time on friends’ phones if they leave them unattended.

Diana Beebe's Blog, Mermaids Don't Do Windows, Diana Beebe, science fiction, middle grade fantasy, fantasy
Hijacked phone camera. It happens!

If you have a child with an iPhone, you can also set restrictions (or parental controls) to limit browsing, adult content (we all know how innocent searches can lead down places of no return), application downloads and purchasing, and more.

When I started writing GLOW, my pantsing ways led me straight into a world of encrypted files and computer hard drives that my main character has to break so she can uncover the secrets that threaten her and her twin’s lives.Diana Beebe's Blog, Mermaids Don't Do Windows, Diana Beebe, science fiction, middle grade fantasy, fantasy

My main character is just at good at destroying browser history and covering her tracks when she pokes around computer places and does other things that are probably illegal. She uses what she knows to survive.

So I hollered at my Tech Guy (Jay Donovan at TechSurgeons.com), and he loaded me up with enough information to make my head explode. It was a mess. Zombie feast messy. And you know how much I like to clean.

You can password protect your files, too. In Word and Excel, go to File > Save as, select Tools > General Options, and then set up the password.

To get my feet wet with bigger stuff, I’m going to encrypt a thumb drive. Here is some tech information I found with a simple internet search, but be careful. Don’t make it too easy for the zombies to feast.

Need I remind my friends to destroy the history? 😀

 Do you keep your phone, computer, or thumb drives encrypted to protect your information?

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