Encrypting Device

[DJCUEBALL]

Hi everyone,

I am thinking of encrypting my S3 but wanted to know if there are any drawbacks to doing this?

Thank you in advance for the help.

 

[tk-093]

I have not looked into if Samsung is doing anything different, but from what I understand the encryption is software based. That can mean the phone has to work a little harder to encrypt/decrypt the device.

The other type is hardware based, for example, the iPhone 3GS and above has a chip that handles the encryption, much like the Seagate Opal drives if you follow that stuff in the PC world. That makes encryption pretty instant and no real impact on the processing of the device. I don't know if Android does that yet.

 

[tk-093]

You know.... I just read this article about SAFE.

Samsung’s SAFE initiative will make the Galaxy S3 enterprise-friendly | Ubergizmo

SAFE contains a suite of enterprise tools such as Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, support for VPN and Mobile Device Management, along with on-board AES-256 bit encryption

Maybe that means hardware based encryption? I'll keep looking. It also makes it sound like there is a actual SAFE version of the GS3.. that's weird.

 

[DJCUEBALL]

Thank you. That is good info to know... I was about to start the process when it prompted me saying that it would be irreversible. I got to thinking, I should check online first before I proceed with the process.

 

[tech_head]

Don't do it. Unless you are religious about backing up your data, you star to lose all pictures and everything else you create if the phone craps out. Encrypting the SD card is BAAADDDDDD.....

Go search some other forums.
You essentially marry your SD card to that phone with no way to get your data unless you have that phone.

 

[DJCUEBALL]

I backup my SD card files frequently. My biggest concern is if I ever lose the phone, that someone can just remove the SD card and access my files. I'm still thinking about it though.

 

[a-dogg]

Hey --

Curious what you decided. I'm in the same boat and haven't made up my mind...

I have everything backed up to Dropbox as well as a physical backup drive at home, so it doesn't matter if I lose stuff on the card if the phone dies...

Thanks!

 

[DJCUEBALL]

I decided to only encrypt the SD card for now. I'll go ahead and do my usual, manual backups just in case. I'm still uncomfortable by having my stuff stored in the cloud.

 

[fselmo77]

Yes it is a good idea to encrypt your phone, especially if you have sensitive data stored on it such as your bank app, private photo's etc.....if your phone were to be lost are stolen the person would HAVE to have to password key in order to get the encrypted data....If your phone is not encrypted, even with a pass code someone could get your info by bypassing the password using bit steam software to recover all the data....If it is encrypted all they would have is gibberish....although that can be deciphered also, it would take a math magician to do so granted your information is that valuable......the only draw back is having to type a password every time you access your phone.....

 

[kittentude]

Just a note as I was looking for information on Encrypting my S3 and ran across this article. Hope it helps as an alternative.

"The Galaxy S3 comes with a really useful feature called remote controls, which allows you to locate your phone from Samsung's website as well as remotely lock and erase it. If your phone is ever lost or stolen, you will be able to see exactly where it is at any time and keep your data safe from thieves."

How to make your Samsung Galaxy S3 more secure | Reviews | CNET UK

 

[DJCUEBALL]

Sorry for the late response but seems this feature is not available in North America unfortunately. It would've been nice to have though.