I Examined High 7 Encryption Software program to Safeguard Digital Recordsdata

After I entered the company {industry} 5 years in the past, I used to entry the online by way of a neighborhood space community (LAN) server. When each web site you browse is monitored, it raises alarming questions concerning safety and encryption.

After studying a factor or two, I teamed up with IT specialists and community engineers to get a extra holistic image of encryption. That is once they knowledgeable me {that a} truckload of reminiscence storage, server incompatibility, {hardware} and OS versioning, and worker lack of information are the explanations for weak information encryption.

After I mixed their mentoring with my very own expertise, I set about to check round 40+ encryption software program to learn to enhance cybersecurity.

Out of the 40 options, I experimented with 7 greatest encryption software program that offered key options like public key interface (PKI), ciphering, hashing, file shredding, and safe locker companies that scale back the scope of knowledge infiltration and malware. It additionally led me to stipulate key parameters, professionals and cons, and real-time G2 opinions of those 7 greatest encryption software program that may assist cybersecurity groups take their likelihood and make investments their greenback properly.

Other than my very own testing, these 7 greatest encryption software program have additionally been rated as prime market leaders on G2 by way of buyer satisfaction, ease of use, market presence, and cost-effectiveness. 

7 greatest encryption software program that I’ve tried and liked

Encryption software program gives symmetric and uneven cryptography options to encrypt and safe recordsdata and decrypt encrypted recordsdata utilizing a public or personal key. It safeguards your native recordsdata and net supplies in opposition to unwarranted spies or snoops. As I went by means of the testing and experimentation part, I realized how the encryption patterns have modified and shifted from conventional encryption algorithms to trendy functionalities like hashing, passphrases, and lockers. 

It’s fascinating to witness how we have come a good distance from encrypting and securing recordsdata by way of ciphertext to storing them in cloud storage containers or lockers. Whether or not my information is saved on-premise or on the cloud, these greatest encryption instruments lengthen their service by way of easy and safe authentication to private and non-private clouds. Additional, the general public key interface (PKI) function helped me alternate protected information by sharing a standard public key with the recipient whereas sustaining its privateness from different customers. 

One factor is for positive: these software program construct a digital fortress round your delicate information that’s inaccessible to snoopers or feds and supply end-to-end safety in opposition to malware and brute pressure assaults. However whereas I share my very own private expertise of how glad I’m with the encryption companies, I might say signing up for a trial or registering for a customized demo would provide you with first-hand expertise with shortlisting instruments on your information encryption processes. 

My main shortlisting parameters of the encryption software program throughout testing

Selecting encryption software program was a twofold course of for me: I needed instruments that provide end-to-end file encryption and have been simple to arrange, implement, and run. I experimented with numerous native and cloud units with totally different storage capacities to judge which encryption software gives the utmost compatibility and information alternate services to transmit information from level A to level B with none packet loss.

Apart from placing collectively a guidelines of which encryption algorithms are current within the encryption software program, I regarded for added plug-and-play instruments and on-line backup companies to double-verify that no unencrypted file is left on the system. With that, I’ve outlined the becoming parameters for each encryption software that you need to pre-check to get your greenback’s return on funding and construct a powerful cybersecurity entourage on your firm. 

• On-line File Shredding:  If the encryption software leaves an encrypted file after locking the encrypted model, it might improve the chance of malware or brute pressure assaults. Having a file shredding or file overwriting possibility ensures that there are not any traces of the unique file within the drive or binary codes that may be hacked or decrypted by exterior hackers. Encryption instruments that supplied further integration with safe deletion instruments or file shredders have additionally made it to this listing as a result of as soon as I encrypted a file, I might use these instruments to auto-delete the unique file. 
• Hashing algorithms: Setting a grasp password for a locker or a vault obtained me actually confused if the software does not have a password supervisor and I ended up setting predictable passwords. This is the reason hashing algorithms are a must-additive in encryption software program that units hotkeys for shared information with the recipient. Superior hashing algorithms like SHA-3 or Argon2 add an additional layer of safety to encrypted recordsdata in order that they will not be decoded even when somebody is aware of the password. 
• Encryption algorithms: Encryption algorithms like AES, RSA, or Blowfish are used to retailer delicate worker data or safe information by way of tokenization. I used to be utilizing a digital personal community that made my information recordsdata fairly susceptible and liable to viruses, lest I did not use encryption algorithms to safeguard my recordsdata from net visitors. Encryption software program has to supply encryption algorithms to stop exterior interruption or breach throughout the information transmission course of. 
• {Hardware}-based encryption assist:  One other quintessential function I evaluated was the power to encrypt and tokenize recordsdata throughout all {hardware} computing methods. Be it Home windows, macOS digital machine, or USB drive, I shortlisted the instruments that combine with {hardware} modules like trusted platform modules (TPM) OR {hardware} safety modules (HSM) for securing digital recordsdata throughout units and constructing a quick and environment friendly encryption workflow for firms.
• Public key infrastructure (PKI) integration: With the general public key infrastructure (PKI) function, I might encrypt a file with a public key and share it with a recipient who decrypts it with a non-public key. It signifies that if the file is open, anybody can entry it utilizing the general public key, however whether it is locked, it’s fully inaccessible to everybody, and solely I can open it with a non-public key. This method is ideal for safe communication, the place I can share public keys freely with out worrying that everybody would learn the file contents which are meant for me.
• Full disk and partition encryption: Full disk encryption does every part: encrypting disk recordsdata, shredding duplicate recordsdata, and overwriting disk area with new file folders to supply extra information integrity. Partition encryption can also be helpful as I can choose, compress, and encrypt simply the crucial paperwork on my drive and safe it in a vault, and this function is essentially the most advantageous if others additionally entry your drive. Full disk encryption is a vital function because it locks and safeguards all recordsdata and folders saved on a disk and even permits cloud encryption for cloud drives. 
• Safety key escrow: Safety key escrow is my security internet. It looks like giving the trusted authority of your information to recognized stakeholders and sharing an encryption key by way of a distinct messaging system simply to have a backup in case I overlook the important thing. For somebody like me who has hassle managing a number of passwords, this protects me from the effort of setting a password restoration, as I can share the important thing with licensed members to entry encrypted recordsdata and folders. 
• Safe boot and firmware integration: Safe boot is all about belief. After I energy up my gadget, safe boot ensures that solely trusted working methods and kernels are loaded. It prevents any exterior interference or snooping throughout the bootstrapping of the working system to guard {hardware} and software program recordsdata. Encryption software program that gives firmware safety is pivotal if you wish to add a number of layers of safety to your native recordsdata and net recordsdata.
• Key Sharding: Some encryption instruments fully nullified any scope of knowledge theft, as they not solely managed my password for vaults holding my paperwork however chopped the important thing into elements and saved every a part of the passkey in a distinct location. Solely I used to be capable of assemble my key again collectively and defend my recordsdata and folders from being accessed throughout my absence.

These parameters set an encryption software other than the noise of various cybersecurity methods available in the market. Now, with my private expertise of making an attempt and researching the very best 7 encryption instruments out of the 40+ instruments that I shortlisted, I’m sure that every of those options is designed to guard your on-premise and cloud server databases and set excessive requirements for information security whereas decreasing the info breach or unauthorized entry. 

Whereas the above options gave me the required advantages, enabling clean and protected information alternate and creating vaults for my comfort, companies have a distinct means of shortlisting an acceptable software. Earlier than you get into this listing, define your necessities, funds, community structure workflows, and current options to investigate essentially the most appropriate encryption software program.

The listing under comprises real consumer opinions of encryption software program. You will need to observe that distributors providing a free trial are additionally thought-about free on this context. 

To be included on this class, an answer should:

• Safe information and recordsdata utilizing ciphertext
• Put together both information at relaxation, information in transit, or information in use for encryption
• Permit customers to decide on and handle their recordsdata within the encryption settings.

*This information was pulled from G2 in 2025. Some opinions could have been edited for readability.  

In my expertise, Sign was an ideal prompt messaging system for sending and receiving encrypted recordsdata and enhancing or modifying decrypted recordsdata. As I seen that it was troublesome to ship encrypted recordsdata to recipients by way of different instruments, Sign offered an prompt messaging service for attaching customized paperwork with encrypted attachments and sharing them on any cloud platform like Dropbox, Google Drive, and so forth.

Sign’s largest power is its end-to-end encryption. It locks your message information, name recordings, and saved recordsdata inside its protected vault. I did not have to fret about anybody snooping in on my conversations, which feels reassuring as immediately, personal information is susceptible to all international servers. 

I additionally discovered that it makes use of the Sign protocol to guard recordsdata throughout importing or downloading. One of many first issues I seen was how easy and clear the interface is. It isn’t cluttered with pointless options, so you may encrypt and ship your paperwork or recordsdata with none trouble.

Whereas sign does not overwhelm you with choices, it nonetheless supplied every part that I wanted from an prompt messaging platform. It might probably shred unencrypted messages or recordsdata, destroy magnetic file information, log in from cell or another gadget, and create group chats to ship and obtain encrypted recordsdata.

Nonetheless, when you can customized add paperwork, Sign could not give me any assist for disk storage or cloud storage. It does not present encryption for native system recordsdata till you do not customise it as a wealthy textual content doc and add it over Sign’s server. 

General, the app was simple to make use of, however there’s a studying curve for options like disappearing messages or managing backups. Plus, if the particular person you’re messaging is not on Sign, the chats will not be encrypted.

The sign does not present encryption algorithm protection or a password supervisor. General, whereas I really feel it gives a very good platform for spearheading enterprise communication, it lacks a bit by way of sustaining information privateness and safety.

What I dislike about Sign:

• I could not obtain messages till I opened the Sign app. Even after adjusting the unrestricted information battery use and disabling the app pausing, the problem nonetheless persists.
• The desktop name’s ringtone model was a bit jarring to my ears. It felt actually outdated and will be refreshed with one other ringtone.

What G2 Customers dislike about Sign

“Digicam high quality could be very poor. My cellphone has an excellent digicam, however one way or the other after I click on photographs inside Sign, the standard turns into poor. Additionally, generally notifications don’t come till I open the app. So this must be mounted. Additionally, it takes up extra storage than different messaging apps.”

– Sign Evaluate, Rohit T. 

If there’s an app that stands out for encrypting recordsdata and providing extremely technical cipher to guard firm information, it’s none apart from Microsoft Bitlocker for me.

Microsoft Bitlocker is Microsoft’s built-in encryption software for Home windows. It might probably encrypt recordsdata and even merely lock unencrypted recordsdata with out encrypting them. 

If the locker is open, I can view all of the recordsdata and folders. But when the locker is closed, the info stays elusive and untraceable. It makes use of the superior encryption commonplace (AES) algorithm with 128-bit or 256-bit keys to guard your information from prying eyes. It additionally gives further on-line safe deletion and backup companies.

I additionally deployed Microsoft Bitlocker on totally different Home windows working methods, solely to search out out that it built-in completely with Home windows 10 or Home windows 11. You do not require any further integration to configure and launch the appliance.

One other key function was that I might save all my passwords in an inbuilt password supervisor, add hashing layers to lockers, and even log in to the cloud console to entry all my saved lockers. Microsoft Bitlocker offered seamless cloud compatibility and tight-knit encryption companies for my recordsdata.

Talking of passwords, there was a distinction between the right way to set keys for lockers. In the event you overlook your restoration key, your information is gone endlessly. Whereas this makes Bitlocker safe, there was no unique footprint of my file on the pc apart from the encrypted file I could not entry. 

In case you are a MacOS or Android consumer, you will not be capable to launch Microsoft Bitlocker. I additionally could not share any recordsdata or folders with non-Home windows working system customers. 

I might discover that some options weren’t fully consumer pleasant as effectively. When my system needed to replace for TPM examine, all the course of resembled a command line interface program that was obscure. I could not full the password restoration course of to unlock my recordsdata with out exterior help.

What I dislike about Microsoft Bitlocker:

• I could not set automation to deploy a “pre-boot” pin with out the assistance of the customer support crew for my working system.
• I discovered the password restoration course of very sophisticated for encrypted recordsdata that forestall even licensed customers from accessing crucial information. 

What G2 customers dislike about Microsoft Bitlocker:

“It solely works for Home windows and doesn’t fully or totally assist on Linux based mostly machines”

– Microsoft Bitlocker Evaluate, Srivathsav M. 

As quickly as I examined Progress MOVEit, I anticipated it might be the perfect alternative for mid-to-enterprise-level cybersecurity groups. It manages, supervises, and automates all file-sharing and switch processes on one centralized platform.

Whether or not it’s encryption companies, file automation, exercise degree monitoring, or sustaining service degree agreements, Progress MOVEit does not have a dearth of options. It makes use of superior file switch protocols and uneven cryptography to ship recordsdata from one system to a different.

Additional, it additionally enabled me to onboard new information companions, set cloud locker login, and run backup syncs of unencrypted paperwork to make sure the info wasn’t misplaced. From its clear interface to intuitive workflows, you do not have to be an IT genuis to work with this platform. I might share encrypted recordsdata with a fast turnaround and even set workflow automation to cut back guide information monitoring and prognosis.

Each time I hit a snag, their buyer assist crew has at all times been on level. Plus, the information base it gives is a treasure trove of helpful information—excellent for fixing minor points your self. Whether or not you’re dealing with routine transfers or massive information migrations, Progress MOVEit is a trusted and dependable software to work with.

However, like another encryption software program, Progress MOVEit is not excellent. My system lagged incessantly throughout longer system updates, thwarting me from encrypting my recordsdata on the proper time.

I additionally struggled to get a rundown of the variety of disks scanned, the final backup particulars, date, and time within the type of a customizable analytics report. In case you are somebody who depends on detailed analytics, you may the present choices to be a bit missing.

I do not deny Progress MOVEit’s unbreakable encryption requirements, however previous safety incidents have left some customers cautious. It wants a stronger password and hashing mechanism to compress and safe a number of recordsdata and construct extra belief.

What I dislike about Progress MOVEit:

• Whereas customizing a doc, I might solely hyperlink one encrypted attachment per e mail.
• I could not disable encryption algorithms throughout a number of hosts with a single click on, which disabled file sharing even when the recipient had the password.

What G2 Customers dislike about Progress MOVEit

“Typically there are bugs on the appliance and whenever you attempt to get assist, they will not be capable to remedy the bug difficulty as a result of it is an replace that must be rolled to an X date to do all of it for all their purchasers.”

– Progress MOVEit Evaluate, Ryan T.

Not solely did FileVault provide cryptography companies to my particular person recordsdata, however it prolonged the encryption service to an entire disk drive. FileVault gives encryption options like storage containers, vaults, and lockers that may retailer something, from identity-proof paperwork to bank card data.

FileVault is macOS’s built-in encryption function. It gives companies like full disk encryption, on-line file shredding, safe file protocol, and on-line backup and restoration. It is free, included with each Mac, and does not require any further configuration.

What I really like most about FileVault is its hermetic safety. It makes use of XTS-AES-128 encryption with a 256-bit key, which sounds tremendous technical – and it’s – however in plain terms- it means my information is locked down like Fort Knox with a grasp password.

Whether or not private paperwork, work recordsdata, or anything, FileVault ensures that the recordsdata are encrypted and transformed into cipher to guard them from unethical predators. The info is all tied to my Mac credentials, which means solely I or somebody with my personal key can entry it.

That stated, FileVault does have its downers. One factor I’ve seen is a slight efficiency hit when FileVault is enabled. It isn’t a dealbreaker for me, however in case you work with older macOS or resource-heavy apps, the system may lag or be susceptible to exterior bugs.

One other hiccup is accessibility. Whereas it is nice on my Mac, there isn’t any cell app to launch the app and entry encrypted recordsdata. If in case you have a number of individuals utilizing the identical Mac, it might be onerous to set information masking and defend your information from different customers.

Positive, FileVault is not excellent, however it does present the best diploma of endpoint safety and encryption to your native and international recordsdata.

What I dislike about FileVault:

• I struggled to take care of the info integrity of my encrypted recordsdata in case a number of individuals used my Mac and tried to entry the lockers.
• FileVault interfered with some saved recordsdata on my system and ended up tampering with them or making them unreadable.

What G2 Customers dislike about FileVault

“Apple has but to supply an enterprise-wide administration possibility for FileVault. Whereas third get together distributors do a number of the work right here, it might imply extra if Apple did work right here to ensure we now have a sustained path ahead with FileVault.”

– FileVault Evaluate, Joel P.

In my expertise, Virtru has obtained to be essentially the most versatile e mail encryption software to switch your recordsdata by way of e mail from one desktop to the opposite.

Virtru protects the e-mail content material that has been despatched and likewise provides me an audit path of attachments securely despatched by the e-mail server. I particularly love how seamlessly it integrates with platforms like Gmail or different e mail purchasers. You simply must allow it, and it gives optimum safety and encryption algorithm assist on your e mail attachments.

Virtru additionally makes use of end-to-end file encryption to make sure you and your meant recipient can entry the mail. I simply needed to set a public key to encrypt an e mail and share it by way of an prompt messaging gadget with the consumer who can provide the password and open the attachment. It appeared simple, handy, and safe on the identical time.

I used to be additionally impressed by Virtru’s suite of real-time integrations, particularly those with Microsoft Outlook and Google Workspace. It isn’t nearly locking down your personal inbox but additionally about defending delicate information like enterprise particulars, private transaction particulars, and so forth. 

However, after I tried to entry Virtru on cell, I bumped into compatibility points. Typically, my emails did not open as easily as they need to, which was a bit irritating on the go.

In case you are sharing recordsdata, Virtru has you coated with e mail encryption and granular entry management. However what if the file dimension is just too massive? I could not connect wealthy textual content paperwork with a number of encrypted attachments with the e-mail that knowledgeable me the software couldn’t ship or obtain recordsdata past a sure dimension.

That stated, Virtru’s cons do not overshadow its gleaming professionals. For somebody like me who’s a bit paranoid about e mail information safety, it appeared pure gold. Additionally, I deem it an ideal match for industries that incessantly share delicate information, like healthcare, banks, retail, and e-commerce firms.

What I dislike about Virtru:

• I struggled with the extraordinarily complicated consumer interface and occasional lagging of the software for each senders and recipients.
• I consider Virtru is a little more exorbitant than different information encryption or e mail encryption platforms I’ve examined. 

What G2 Customers dislike about Virtru:

“Sending an encrypted e mail to suppliers exterior of the group is commonly gradual and troublesome on the receiving finish. They report being caught in a buffering loop for lengthy durations, even days. Each internally and externally, e mail attachments typically require a second authentification, which is time-consuming.”

– Virtru Evaluate, Jim O.

In case you are a safety maniac like me, Tresorit will likely be a one-stop store for enhancing, managing, and decrypting recordsdata with improved safety protection.

Tresorit is a content material collaboration software that allows you to work together, run conversations, share attachments and assets, and handle information audit logs on your firm’s processes. I might lock the acquired information inside folders and conceal them from the primary menu in order that it stays inaccessible to different content material collaborators. 

For companies and anybody who needs GDPR or HIPAA compliance, Tresorit gives information residency choices to tokenize information recordsdata and ship them by way of protected networks.

One other function that I discovered tremendous useful was to arrange safe deposit hyperlinks. This lets individuals ship recordsdata to me securely. And it’s ridiculously simple for them to make use of it.  Additional, I had a number of choices at my disposal like file and folder encryption, file shredding, file overwriting and accessing vaults by way of command line to handle and safeguard digital recordsdata and monitor real-time exercise of customers all through all firm places.

Tresorit appeared like an amazing cybersecurity framework for content material administration, however there are some seen cons. I presume the subscription can be costly for freelancers or small companies working on a good funds.

Downloading recordsdata for offline use was additionally not as simple as I might like, and managing recordsdata with out an web connection will likely be clunky. In the event you combine Tresorit together with your digital personal community, it wants your IP addresses and “https”  net addresses to guard you from server visitors.  

I’ve additionally seen that the synchronization or encryption course of takes a little bit of time and delays what you are promoting operations. It isn’t a dealbreaker, however if you’re engaged on tight deadlines to entry and edit new databases, this may trigger a hurdle.

What I dislike about Tresorit:

• I could not scan and share my PDFs instantly with the crew because the doc scanner did not have a “share” possibility.
• After I deleted a backup file, I by accident deleted the unique file from the cloud as effectively. It did not save the unencrypted model of the file.

What G2 Customers dislike about Tresorit

“I appeared to have very gradual obtain charges for a lot of small recordsdata that I needed to obtain for a mission. I ought to have zipped and downloaded these recordsdata from the web site, however I went over the (for me) extra handy approach of choosing the folder in Explorer. 11.000 photos have been then downloaded with a charge of 3-5kB/s, which was no difficulty with my web connection.”

– Tresorit Evaluate, Martin P.

After I used Kaspersky Endpoint Safety for Enterprise, I jogged again to the times when each private or house PC was pre-configured with Kaspersky’s antivirus utility to guard methods from unwarranted viruses. 

It is the identical now as effectively. What I’ve at all times appreciated about Kaspersky is its rock-solid safety and intuitive consumer interface laden with clear and inexperienced graphics. On the dashboard, I might view the final system scan, firewall safety, risk investigation, incident safety, and vulnerability scanning. 

I’ve seldom skilled risk detection like this. It is like having an ever-vigilant guard on obligation. It not solely supplied companies to encrypt recordsdata but additionally offered a centralized administration console to trace, regulate, and diagnose systemic transfers.

Whether or not you deploy updates, monitor threats, or handle insurance policies throughout units, every part is in a single place. Plus, Kaspersky ran auto-check-ins to detect any infiltration or vulnerabilities on my system to make sure every part was safe. 

I additionally genuinely preferred the interface. It is simple, which implies you do not have to be a cybersecurity knowledgeable to search out your approach round. And regardless of being filled with options, it felt extraordinarily light-weight and did not eat into web server capability. 

Now, let’s talk about the areas for enchancment inside this cybersecurity answer. Whereas the function set is intensive, I felt a bit overwhelmed when navigating the myriad of endpoint safety choices. 

Whereas the efficiency was typically advantageous, there have been instances when my recordsdata took a number of time to scan, and the system felt a bit sluggish. Buyer assist additionally did not provide any speedy decision, so I needed to maintain the phone line for a very long time to boost a ticket.

General, Kaspersky Endpoint Safety for Enterprise proved to be sturdy and dependable encryption software that encrypted all my recordsdata and gives optimum cloud-based safety on your belongings. In case you are okay with occasional efficiency downtimes, it is among the greatest encryption software program to contemplate throughout your decision-making course of.

What I dislike about Kaspersky Endpoint Safety for Enterprise:

• I obtained confused with the consumer interface accommodated with a number of anti-malware, safety, and encryption choices, and it took me a while to determine it out.
• Full size deep scans slowed down the efficiency of my system because it consumed giant reminiscence processing energy.

What G2 Customers dislike about Kaspersky Endpoint Safety for Enterprise:

“There might be extra visibility in risk detection. For instance, if it detects a virus, it is quarantined, and we will not discover particulars like how the virus obtained in; it solely reveals the file identify and the trail. So there ought to be extra detailed reporting on why it was quarantined.”

– Kaspersky Endpoint Safety for Enterprise Evaluate, Manish D.

Discover the 7 greatest net browser software program examined by my colleague to publish your net catalogs and net assets and monitor incoming server visitors to make sure a safe circulate of knowledge.