Attention all Mac users, what is the best free and open source encryption for files whether it be...

[G+_Rud Dog]

Attention all Mac users, what is the best free and open source encryption for files whether it be 1 file or multiple files?

[G+_Steve Martin]

OpenSSL. Easy and available pretty much everywhere.

[G+_Rud Dog]

Steve Martin my wife is looking to encrypt a file on our nas and she runs a Mac. Want to make sure I download one without a bunch of bloatware.

[G+_Eddie Foy]

Best?  not enough info.

But OpenSSL is good (barring all the vulns still being found)

TrueCrypt is still my go to. Not Open Source, but source available.(playing with VeraCrypt?)

 

Even just an encrypted DMG (Don't think OpenSource but built into OSX)

 

Don't get hung up on 'open source' as being the duck's nuts.  Unless you can audit it, its no safer/better then any other software.

 

Might wanna check the HashCat.net/wiki site.  That program makes minced meat of crappy hashing/encryption.

[G+_Eddie Foy]

There is also stenography for small files.  Just  hide them in bigger files.  Not the most secure, but its hidden.  Of course you can encrypt before stuffing.

(kinda like the Windows NTFS  alternative file streams, which is really cool/slick IMOHO.)

[G+_Rud Dog]

Looking for file encryption for example lets say create a financial spreadsheet in Excel and want to email as an attachment. Would like to be able to encrypt on my end attach to email and have person on the other end decrypt using the same software. There is software for the windows environment but looking for same but on an Apple computer.

[G+_Stephen Bertoni]

GPG is worth considering. I would avoid OpenSSL. There is LibreSSL but neither of them are particularly user friendly.

[G+_Aaron Bishop]

How about a cross-platform chrome app that's been mentioned on SN? https://minilock.io/

OpenSSL is ok, but unless you post a link to a script on how to do it it isn't practical. GPG is worth the effort if you are giving files to other people who will invest time in learning gpg. Mac has a decent GPG GUI available.

[G+_Rud Dog]

Aaron Bishop minilock it does the trick only one tiny item which is a bit annoying but can work around unless there is a way to save your entries;

Email address

passphrase

You have enter them every time you wish to encrypt a doc which is ok for me but doubt the older generation will like having to remember their passphrase.

[G+_Eddie Foy]

password manager.  everyone needs to learn and use them.

[G+_Rud Dog]

Eddie Foy   

Don't know how I would incorporate lastpass into this minilock app other then having to cut and paste user and passpharse from lastpass.

 

Have found and used programs in windows allowing drag and drop of course the other end has to have the same program which is the challenge I am trying to overcome, finding sw functional on both the Windows and Mac machines. Did I mention simplicity? 

[G+_Eddie Foy]

LastPass doesn't offer an option to just copy-n-paste?

If C-n-P is too much you can forget about encryption.

[G+_Rud Dog]

Eddie Foy Thank you for your input Eddie C-n-P is not to much for me appreciate but an understanding of the environment I am attempting to use this in would help. Most of my family members are not really knowledgeable when it comes to safely sending documents over "The Internet" as they put it. So looking for that simple solution.

As for LastPass it does offer a method for copying and pasting usernames and passwords use it all the time would be lost without it on my cell phone. But even that has a work around using Lastpass browser.

Again thank you Eddie.

 

[G+_Eddie Foy]

Another simple option, two scripts  one to encrypt, one to decrypt a folder.  You say they have a mac?  Either bash or applscript (or automator) will do.  you can even compile the applescript to 'help' obfuscate the PW, if hard-coded.

 

Have a folder just for this, and only keep the desired current file in it.

[G+_Rud Dog]

Eddie Foy Excellent and surpassing brilliant thank you Eddie and if memory serves correctly believe there were some sample scripts available online. 

[G+_Eddie Foy]

I just tossed these together (applescript_

 

 

-- Encrypt

-- folder with secret stuff

set secretfolder to "~/Desktop/MomsRecipies"

-- password

set passwrd to "changeme"

 

-- encrypt

do shell script "openssl aes-256-cbc  -salt -in " & secretfolder & "/gots.txt -out " & secretfolder & "/secrets.enc -k " & passwrd

 

 

 

-- Decrypt

-- folder with secret stuff

set secretfolder to "~/Desktop/MomsRecipies"

-- password

set passwrd to "changeme"

 

--Dencrypt

do shell script "openssl aes-256-cbc  -d -in " & secretfolder & "/secrets.enc -out " & secretfolder & "/decrypted.txt -k " & passwrd

 

 

 

Change as needed, paste right into applescript editor then save as app.  Double click to preform.  The folder should be kept 'clean'  The folder has to already exist, and as is it will stomp on files.

EDIT: Wildcards work too, but will need to modify for it.  Outfile would be the issue

[G+_Stephen Bertoni]

Jeezus is AppleScript always that ugly? Again, OpenSSL is a bad idea. This is now past the GPG complexity level. So I will again recommend GPG.

[G+_Eddie Foy]

The applescript ugliness was actually bash ugliness. (also a 3 minute POC)

The main reason I like applescript is that's a API to get data from one application to another.  That's it's real strength.  I can take data from Safari, crunch it with Excel and dump into Filemaker.

Also nothing wrong with OpenSSL that isn't wrong with GPG

[G+_Stephen Bertoni]

If anyone else is paying attention at this point Mr. Foy is wrong wrong wrong about OpenSSL vs. GPG. If you are a sysadmin who is more or less forced to use OpenSSL that's one thing (although http://libressl.org will hopefully kill OpenSSL dead). Actively encouraging someone to use OpenSSL for a new project, now that is foolishness. ?