Encryption should be used when transmitting e-mails and web content if it contains trusted information such as credentials, credit card numbers, PIN (personal identification number) or TAN (transaction number). This also applies to the storage of personal or personal data on the local PC or mobile phone. Without encryption, this information may be spied on or altered.
Encrypting Files
For PCs and notebooks there is the open source program VeraCrypt, which runs under all common operating systems (Windows, Linux, MacOS). This software creates an encrypted file container, which is made available as a new drive and can be filled with data. As soon as the data no longer needs to be available in the work process, the container can be closed and the files are protected from any further access. VeraCrypt is not suitable for encrypting files for a cloud service, as it stores the data in a large container, which must then be uploaded to the cloud service in its entirety. For cloud services there are other programs that encrypt each file individually, e.g. Cryptomator or BoxCryptor.
Encrypting Emails
Detailed information on the encrypted retrieval and sending of e-mails can be found on the e-mail security page.
Encryption During Mobile Surfing via VPN
When transmitting credentials, an encrypted connection should always be used. If the service offers such a connection, it can be identified by an "https" in front of the Internet address. Many browsers used for surfing the Internet also provide this security option visually by means of a closed lock or by green colouring. When using a public, unknown or unencrypted WLAN, a VPN connection can be used to bridge the insecure WLAN. The WLAN connection is used as a data channel and another encrypted connection is established to a server in the WWU IT so that all further information between the mobile access and the computer in the data center is transmitted in encrypted form.