12 Free Disk Encryption Tools for Windows, Linux and macOS
In today's digital age, protecting your data has never been more critical. Whether you're safeguarding sensitive personal information or securing confidential business files, disk encryption offers a powerful solution to ensure your data remains private and protected.
Disk encryption tools work by converting your data into unreadable code that can only be accessed with the correct decryption key, providing an essential layer of security.
Benefits of Disk Encryption:
- Enhanced Privacy: Protects your personal data from prying eyes by ensuring that only you can access your information.
- Increased Security: Secures your files against unauthorized access, even if your device is lost or stolen.
- Data Protection: Hides entire disks or partitions, making the data invisible to unauthorized users.
- Compliance: Helps businesses meet regulatory requirements for data protection by securing sensitive customer and financial information.
- Flexible Use-Cases: Ideal for both personal use (securing photos, documents, etc.) and professional use (protecting client data, financial records, etc.).
By using these free disk encryption tools, you can take control of your data security, ensuring that your information is protected across all major operating systems.
This post explores 12 free disk encryption tools available for Windows, Linux, and macOS. These tools not only help improve your privacy and security but also offer specific use-cases such as hiding entire disks, securing files, and ensuring that unauthorized users cannot access your sensitive information.
Hazem Abbas
Whether you're looking to secure individual files or entire drives, these tools offer the flexibility and security you need to keep your data safe.
1. VeraCrypt
VeraCrypt is a free and open-source disk encryption with strong security based on TrueCrypt. It works on Windows, Linux, FreeBSD and macOS.
Features
- Creates a virtual encrypted disk within a file and mounts it as a real disk.
- Encrypts an entire partition or storage device such as USB flash drive or hard drive.
- Encrypts a partition or drive where Windows is installed (pre-boot authentication).
- Encryption is automatic, real-time(on-the-fly) and transparent.
- Parallelization and pipelining allow data to be read and written as fast as if the drive was not encrypted.
- Encryption can be hardware-accelerated on modern processors.
- Provides plausible deniability, in case an adversary forces you to reveal the password: Hidden volume (steganography) and hidden operating system.
veracrypt2. DiskCryptor
DiskCryptor is a free open-source encryption tool for securing entire hard drives or partitions on Windows systems. It offers strong protection for sensitive data through various encryption algorithms, making it a reliable choice for both personal and professional use.
DavidXanatos3. TDX Full Disk Encryption
Full Disk Encryption is an outstanding open-source tool designed to secure data by encrypting entire disks or partitions.
It provides strong encryption to protect sensitive information, ensuring that unauthorized users cannot access the data.
The app supports multiple operating systems, including Linux, Windows, and macOS, making it a versatile solution for users across different platforms.
cc-api4. cryptctl (Linux)
cryptctl is a utility for setting up disk encryption using the popular well-established LUKS method. It generates random numbers to use as encryption keys, and safely keep the keys on a centralised key server. It can encrypt arbitrary directories into encrypted disk partitions.
Supported Operating Systems: Cryptctl supports only Linux systems, where it can be used to manage encryption on a range of devices and volumes.
HouzuoGuo5. LibreCrypt (Windows)
LibreCrypt is a free disk encryption tool that allows users to secure their data by encrypting entire drives or specific volumes. It provides a straightforward interface for creating and managing encrypted containers, ensuring that sensitive information remains protected.
LibreCrypt is particularly useful for users who need a reliable and easy-to-use solution for encrypting data on Windows systems.
Features
- Full transparent encryption, containers appear as removable disks in Windows Explorer.
- Compatible with Linux encryption: dm-crypt and LUKS. Linux shell scripts support deniable encryption on Linux.
- Explorer program lets you browse containers when you don't have administrator permissions.
- Supports smartcards and security tokens.
- Encrypted containers can be a file, a partition, or a whole disk.
- Opens legacy volumes created with FreeOTFE
- Runs on Windows Vista onwards (see note below for 64 bit versions).
- Supports many hash (including SHA-512, RIPEMD-320, Tiger) and encryption algorithms (Including AES, Twofish, and Serpent) in several modes (CBC, LRW, and XTS).
- Optional 'key files' let you use a thumb-drive as a key.
- Portable mode doesn't need to be installed and leaves little trace on 3rd party PCs (administrator rights needed).
- Deniable encryption in case of 'rubber hose cryptanalysis'.
- Considered the most easy to use encryption program for Windows.
6. Picocrypt
Picocrypt is a lightweight, open-source encryption tool designed to protect your files with strong security while maintaining simplicity and ease of use. It allows users to quickly encrypt and decrypt files, ensuring data privacy and security.
Picocrypt is ideal for users seeking a straightforward yet powerful tool for encrypting their files.
Features
- Simple Interface: Easy to use with a focus on minimalism.
- Strong Encryption: Utilizes robust encryption algorithms to secure files.
- Cross-Platform: Available for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
- Portable: Can be run without installation, making it convenient for on-the-go encryption tasks.
- Open Source: Free to use and open for community contributions, ensuring transparency and security.
Supported Systems and Platforms
- Windows
- macOS
- Linux
- Webs
HACKERALERT7. ProxyCrypt
ProxyCrypt is a command line tool that creates encrypted volumes within a file or a hard drive. Encryption and decryption are made on the fly, allowing you to use encrypted volumes like normal ones.
The app is designed for paranoids and advanced users, it is also fast, very lightweight, open source and easy to recompile.
Features
- Supports AES-256, Serpent and SHACAL-2 ciphers.
- Cascade encryption with free choice of the ciphers.
- Supports key files, in conjunction or replacement of the password.
- Mode of operation is XTS.
- Passwords are hashed with the scrypt key derivation function, which uses Whirlpool or Keccak-512 hashing function.
- Scrypt can be tuned for more security or more speed.
- Password length can be up to 250 characters.
- Protection against keyloggers.
- Supports image files or physical drives with MBR (with extended partition) or GPT.
- Encrypted volumes can be created at any location, not necessarily at the beginning of a file or a partition.
- Auto-dismount after a specified period of inactivity or when system enters a suspended state.
- NTFS folders can be used as mount point instead of drive letters.
- Supports very long paths of image file (more than 260 characters).
- Performances improved with AES instructions, SSE2 optimizations and asynchronous read/write.
- Available in 32 and 64-bit with distinct AVX versions.
8. DiskCryptor
DiskCryptor - fully open solution to encrypt all partitions, including system. The program is a replacement for proprietary DriveCrypt Plus pack and PGP WDE.
DiskCryptor Features
- Supports full disk encryption, partition encryption, and external storage encryption
- Compatible with Windows operating systems (XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, and 10)
- Employs AES, Twofish, and Serpent encryption algorithms
- Allows multiple encrypted volumes on a single disk
- Supports hardware-accelerated encryption for faster performance
- Pre-boot authentication to protect your system from unauthorized access
- User-friendly interface
- Can create encrypted ISO images for secure data storage
9. Ubuntu Easy Full-Disk-Encryption (Linux)
Ubuntu-Easy-Full-Disk-Encryption is an open-source script designed to simplify the process of setting up full disk encryption on Ubuntu systems.
It provides an easy-to-follow method for encrypting the entire disk, ensuring that all data stored on the system is protected against unauthorized access.
This tool is particularly useful for Ubuntu users who want to enhance their system's security without dealing with complex configurations.
LJJS10. LUKS (Linux)
LUKS (Linux Unified Key Setup) by the Guardian Project is an open-source encryption tool designed to secure data on Linux systems. It provides a robust method for encrypting disk partitions, ensuring that sensitive information remains protected from unauthorized access.
Features of LUKS:
- Strong Encryption: Utilizes industry-standard encryption algorithms to protect data.
- Key Management: Supports multiple keys for flexible access control.
- Cross-Platform Compatibility: Primarily designed for Linux, with support for other Unix-like systems.
- Integration with Linux: Works seamlessly with Linux-based systems, making it a go-to choice for securing data.
- Open Source: Transparent and community-driven, ensuring ongoing development and security updates.
LUKS by the Guardian Project is ideal for Linux users seeking reliable disk encryption to protect their data from unauthorized access.
11. Cryptomator: Free Open source encryption software for macOS, Linux and Windows
Hazem Abbas
12. TrueCrypt (macOS, Windows, Linux) [Not Maintained]
TrueCrypt is a discontinued free open-source encryption tool that was widely used to secure data by creating encrypted volumes on your hard drive. Although it is no longer maintained, many users still utilize it for its strong encryption capabilities.
TrueCrypt Features
- On-the-Fly Encryption: Encrypts data automatically as it's saved and decrypts it when accessed.
- Hidden Volumes: Allows for the creation of a hidden encrypted volume within another encrypted volume for added security.
- Cross-Platform: Available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it versatile across different systems.
- Encryption Algorithms: Supports several strong encryption algorithms, including AES, Serpent, and Twofish.
- Portable Mode: Can run from a USB drive without installation, providing flexibility for use on multiple systems.
- Creates a virtual encrypted disk within a file and mounts it as a real disk.
- Encrypts an entire partition or storage device such as USB flash drive or hard drive.
- Encrypts a partition or drive where Windows is installed (pre-boot authentication).
- Parallelization and pipelining allow data to be read and written as fast as if the drive was not encrypted.
- Encryption can be hardware-accelerated on modern processors.
- Provides plausible deniability, in case an adversary forces you to reveal the password:
Hidden volume (steganography) and hidden operating system.
