Encrypting USB drives

We use a simple encryption method which provides enhanced protection against data theft or exposure of sensitive information by storing everything on the hard drive in an encrypted format. Once it’s up and running, most users won’t notice a difference. The encryption works in the background and will usually only be invoked should somebody try to hack into the device.

USB drive encryption for Windows

Encryption for USB devices is available as standard on all staff Windows devices connected to the University network. It’s a very simple process, which requires just two clicks and a password to encrypt all of the content on a USB device, such as a pen drive or an external hard drive.

USB drive encryption for Macs

USB encryption is also available for Macs and MacBooks, but there are a few things that you need to be mindful of before using this feature:

• Before encrypting it, you will need to format your USB device; to avoid losing any data you need to back up any content you have stored on your USB device before beginning this process
• You’ll need to provide the password and this is not stored on our systems (if you lose your password there will be no way to recover it, or any of the data held on your encrypted USB device)
• Once encrypted, the data on your USB device will only be accessible on other Mac devices

Cross-platform USB drive encryption

For any members of staff who need to encrypt data and then access it on multiple platforms (ie, Windows and Mac), your department can purchase USB sticks with built-in encryption which we’ll source and configure for you.

Please send any requests, along with your budget holder’s approval, to IT Helpline.