Encrypting External Hard Drive Used With Chromebook?

I posted this in the chromebook subforum but I think it probably would be better answered here? So i use bitlocker with my dell xps windows ten laptop. I also use an old chromebook.


So I have a one tb external hard drive that i downloaded lot of videos/files on with the chromebook. Thus after a lot of files, i transfer it to my chromebook by copy and pasting it etc. I only connect it to my chromebook though and not my main dell xps laptop windows ten.


So whenever i connect it to usb port on chromebook, i can access the files. Now how do i encrypt this external hard drive if I only connect it to my chromebook? Do i need to download an encryption program from the google play store? Or do i need to connect it to my windows ten laptop and then encrypt it with say bitlocker? But when i connect the external hard drive to my chromebook, how would it ask me for a bitlocker password then since it doesn't use windows?

 

Chromebooks don't play well with software encryption of external drives.
https://bugs.chromium.org/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=370372
Last updated Nov 2020 - Still a missing feature.

 

justinpaulyrondrew, heard about this thing called Google? Try it someday.

Anyway, all one needs to know about the subject > https://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1474501

 

AFAIK Bitlocker is the MOST dangerous setup you can do to your computer it protects nothing and the user will they themselves lock themselves out.

 

I hold the 100% opposite opinion.

 

@StormJumper @6730b I'm in the middle - I've seen more than a handful of "I enabled whatLocker?", but then having the key sitting and waiting for the person in their Microsoft Account.

But I don't like Bitlocker for unmanaged users / normal people. It's a mess if you don't know *exactly* what you are doing, and makes the occasional problems a nightmare if you aren't keeping an eye on backups and that precious recovery key.

 

For me any kinda encryption unless your CIA, NSA, KGB you don't need to do that. If they want your data they can already phish it out of you already.

 

I wouldn't touch any of Microsoft's tool for so called security http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...nd-announcements.826887/page-68#post-11040315

Windows 10 News and Announcements...
None should use Microsoft accounts! Tretmine Microsoft Account: Arbitrary lock on online functions...
Post by: Papusan, Jul 15, 2020 in forum: Windows OS and Software

 

In the thread i posted over there, there isn't much information on it. What is suggested by someone else, they never even tried it. I would like to know if anyone here has successfully downloaded/used a program on google play store which would be good for this purpose.


Also not sure if i mentioned this or not, but reason why i don't want to connect my external hard drive... its actually a hard drive in enclosure... to my dell xps windows laptop is because if i have malware/virus/keylogger on it, i dont want to transfer it to my dell laptop etc.

 

@Drew1 Why not fire up a fresh OS / VM to take a look at that external drive?

 

So unless your ext. drive is a .EXE drive hooking it out does nothing until you run or .exe program from it. I have anything ext. to not run by default in Windows 10 that way I can explorer and look at it at the same time and not get infected. Infection only work when you run a .exe program or it was already so infected you would get infected just exploring the drive. If you setup correctly anything hooking up your A/V will scan first and if not then your just asking for trouble.

 

You mean install a VM or Linux on it? The thing is this. I do have a ton of videos and pictures and also tons of chrome bookmarks on my current chromebook. So you suggest copy and pasting everything to it hard drive that is in my enclosure... then install WM or linux? The thing is right now i got like 1gb of space or less on my chromebook.


How much gb would i need to install the VM or linux? I do not want to powerwash my chromebook now because i still have tons of videos/pictures and bookmarks and would like to transfer everything first. I mean with the videos/pictures, i could just copy/paste them. But how would i do this with my bookmarks? I literally bookmarked hundreds of chrome pages where tons of these pages have like 10 or 20 + tabs on each of these bookmarked pages. So once i transfer everything to it... then powerwash my chromebook and then install VM? Or don't bother doing that as deleting all my files/pictures should be enough space for it?

 

@Drew1 I would install a fresh OS on a rig so you can examine your drive with impunity, not worrying about keyloggers or malware.