If we often use a USB stick in public places or on shared workstations, it is a good thing to protect your privacy by hiding the files in it from the sight of other people. To do this it is necessary to encrypt the content of the USB stick so that it is invisible to everyone, while for us it will be sufficient to enter the security password to access the files comfortably without any problem.
In order to protect the data of a USB stick or any pen drive we can use the free VeraCrypt program, which can hide all the contents of a stick in a single secret file, unlockable only with the program.
Below we will show you how to prepare the USB stick and how to use VeraCrypt on Windows to keep the files loaded on the pendrive safe and hidden.
READ ALSO -> If the USB stick is write protected, how to unlock or format it
Protect the data of a USB stick with VeraCrypt
As a first step we will have to completely empty the chosen USB stick (of any size you want) from the files already present: it is not essential in reality, but it is very convenient to do so to keep the order on the stick and avoid confusing the encrypted file with others file.
If the USB flash drive contains unnecessary files, we can format it directly by clicking on the This PC icon (or by opening the same menu from File Explorer ), then right-clicking on the thumb drive icon and finally opening the Format menu.
A window will open where you can select the FAT32 or NTFS file system, select Quick Format and finally click Start .
If the files to be kept on the USB stick are small, we can use FAT32 as the file system; if we have to save videos in HD or other large files (over 4 GB) instead, we recommend using NTFS.
Now that the key is ready, we must install the portable version of VeraCrypt on it, which can be downloaded for free from the link here -> VeraCrypt Portable .
Why focus on the portable version of the program compared to the installable version ">
Now we can click Install to complete the VeraCrypt installation process on the USB stick.
To start protecting it, open the USB stick from the This PC menu then select the executable VeraCryptPortable, present in the only folder in the memory of the stick.
The program will open immediately in English; let's translate it into Italian quickly by clicking at the top on Settings -> Language and selecting Italian in the sliding menu.
Now we will have the program translated into Italian, so as to fully understand all the steps we are going to carry out.
To protect any type of file we will have to create a protected volume, a sort of "secret area" where we can hide all the files by protecting them behind a password.
This protected area will appear on the stick as a single encrypted file, which can only be managed with VeraCrypt.
to create your protected volume inside the USB stick, click on Create a volume in the program interface.
In the first window that appears, select the item Create an encrypted container file then click Next ; in the second screen select Standard VeraCrypt Volume and click Next again.
We will now find ourselves in one of the most important screens, namely the one where you can choose the location of the encrypted volume file; click on the Select File button, make sure that the path to the file is inside the USB stick (possibly outside the VeraCrypt folder), choose a name to give to our archive at the bottom then click Save and then click Next .
In the following screen, make sure that it is selected as the AES encryption algorithm and as the SHA-512 confusion algorithm (more than enough for our purposes) then click on Next again.
We will find ourselves in a new screen where we can choose the size to be given to the encrypted volume; we can also use all the available space available (also based on the files to be saved), but we recommend using only 70% of the space of the key, so that we can manage it better.
We indicate the size in MB or GB and then click Next to continue.
We have reached the most important screen of the whole creation process, that is the choice of the password that will protect the files kept inside the encrypted volume.
We try to enter a strong password of at least 12 characters, containing upper and lower case letters plus a number and a special character (like @, !, *, & Etc.).
When finished, click Next .
We will find ourselves in the final screen, where to select the NTFS encrypted volume as the file system and where we must randomly move the mouse in all directions until the bar at the bottom fills up and becomes all green (used to create random keys).
To finally create the volume, simply click on Format at the bottom.
The time required to create the volume depends on the size chosen and the speed of the USB stick, but for small volumes it takes no more than a few minutes.
Now that the volume is created, all we have to do is mount it by opening VeraCrypt, selecting one of the free system letters on the PC used at the top, then clicking Select file at the bottom.
Select the encrypted file inside the USB stick, click OK then select the Mount button at the bottom of the application.
A window will open where you can type the password for the volume; at the end we click OK to mount the volume inside the system.
Now the protected archive will be present on the PC as if it were any other disk with the letter we assigned during assembly; we can view or add new files to protect by opening the This PC menu and clicking on the new disk that will be shown.
Once the protected disk has been filled or viewed, all we have to do is open VeraCrypt again and click Unmount all to encrypt the file again and protect the data of the USB flash drive.
READ ALSO: Encrypt the PC disk and start Windows with Veracrypt
