PU

& LL

Workshops & Tips

Is K OU
su E
e E
50 P T
9

Edited by Sherwin Coelho

14 pages of easy-to-follow workshopss and expert tips

35 Create an encrypted 40 Create a family PLUS
USB stick calendar to share 43 Readers Tips 47 Make Office Better
38 Back up your drive and 42 Remove duplicate 44 Phone & Tablet Tips 48 Secret Tips For...
move Windows to an SSD photos from your phone 46 Make Windows Better Windows icons

Create an encrypted
USB stick
What you need: VeraCrypt; Any Windows version (XP to 10)
Time required: 45 minutes

I ts a good idea to encrypt your

personal les to protect them
from hackers and others who
use your PC. If you keep these
sensitive les on a USB stick,
you should try VeraCrypt. This
superb free tool lets you encrypt
your USB stick with a password.
Once youve done that, your
USB stick will appear empty to
anyone who tries to access it.
Well show you how to encrypt
your USB stick, then decrypt it
to access your les.

4
2

1 3

STEP Insert your USB stick into your PC and delete its data,
1 or move it to your PC for now. Open My Computer and
make a note of the USB sticks drive letter because
youll need this later (in Step 7). To install VeraCrypt, go to
www.snipca.com/25250, then click the Windows download
link at the top. Open the downloaded setup le, click Yes, tick
to accept the terms and conditions 1 , click Next 2 twice, then
click Install. The program automatically creates a system restore
point when you install it.
STEP When you see the VeraCrypt has been
2 successfully installed message, click OK, Finish,
then OK again (to skip the tutorial and close the
programs setup window). Next, right-click VeraCrypts
desktop icon, click Run as administrator, then click Yes
to open it. Youll see a list of drive letters in the main
window 1 . First, click Create Volume 2 . In the window
that opens, select Encrypt a non-system partition/drive
3 , then click Next 3 .

30 August 12 September 2017 35

 Workshops
STEP On the following
1
3 screen, select
Standard VeraCrypt
volume, then click Next.
Now click the Select Device
2
button 1 . Youll see a list of all
your PCs drives 2 , including
any removable ones that are
connected to your PC. Select
your USB stick 3 , click OK 4 , 3
then Next 5 . On the following
screen, select Create
encrypted volume and format 4
it, then click Next again. 5

STEP On the Encryption Options screen, you can

1 4 change your encryption levels using the
Encryption Algorithm 1 and Hash
Algorithm 2 dropdown menus. The former has 10
options you can choose from, and the latter has
four. We think the default encryption levels are
more than adequate, so we didnt change them.
2 Click Next 3 .

2
3
2
1
5
4 3
4

STEP On the Volume Size screen, make sure the size (in
5 bold letters) matches the space on your USB stick,
then click Next. Now type and conrm the password
you want to use to decrypt your USB stick 1 . VeraCrypt
recommends a password containing 20 or more characters, but
make it memorable because theres no way to decrypt your data
if you forget your password. Tick Display password 2 if you
want to make a note of it, then click Next. Youll see a warning
message 3 if your password has fewer than 20 characters. Click
Yes 4 if you want to use it anyway. Alternatively, click No to
strengthen it, then click Next 5 .
STEP In the Large Files section, you can select whether you
6 want to store large les (above 4GB) on your encrypted
drive. Select Yes or No, then click Next. In the Volume
Format section, you are prompted to move your mouse
randomly within the window 1 . This movement will strengthen
your encryption level 2 , shown by the progress bar which lls
as you move your mouse 3 . Leave the other values as they are.
When the bar reaches the end, click Format 4 , then click Yes to
conrm.

36 30 August 12 September 2017


1
3
STEP VeraCrypt will begin formatting your USB stick. Youll
7 see its progress 1 with the estimated time remaining in
the eld below. The process can take several minutes
depending on the size of your USB stick (it took us 30 minutes
to format an 8GB USB stick). After thats done, youll see a
message 2 telling you that you cannot use the original drive
letter that was used for your USB stick (see Step 1). Click OK
twice 3 , click Next, then close the program to complete your
setup.
2 3
STEP When youve nished working from your USB stick,
9 open VeraCrypt, click to select the drive letter you
chose in Step 8 1 , click Dismount 2 , then Exit 3 to
close VeraCrypt. Now open My Computer on your PC. Youll see
your USB stick listed under its original drive letter (see Step 1),
but you wont be able to access it. If you try to open it, youll see
a message saying the drive is empty. Ignore any messages to
format your drive (its how VeraCrypt disguises your USB stick).
Remove the USB stick if you no longer need it.
Create an encrypted USB stick
1 5
2
3
STEP Now re-open VeraCrypt on your desktop, select a drive
8 letter for your formatted USB stick 1 (not its original
letter), click Select Device 2 , choose your USB stick,
then click OK. Next, click the Mount button 3 , type the
password you created (in Step 5) 4 , then click OK 5 . When the
pop-up window disappears, your USB stick is ready. Close the
program, open My Computer, and youll see the drive letter you
chose. Click it twice to access your USB stick.
STEP From now on, ignore any pop-up messages whenever
10 you insert the USB stick into your PC. To decrypt your
USB stick, repeat the instructions in Step 8 - open
VeraCrypt, select any drive letter you want (except its original
drive letter), click Select Device, select your USB stick, then
click OK, Mount, enter your password, then click OK again.
Now open My Computer. Youll see the drive letter you
selected 1 and a dummy drive 2 . Open the former to access the
contents of your USB stick. Repeat Step 9 to encrypt your USB
stick when youve nished. Your les will now be secure from
hackers and snoopers.
30 August 12 September 2017 37