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Encrypt your mobile: advantages and disadvantages
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Smartphones with expandable memory are becoming increasingly rare, especially in the high-end sector. Samsung is one of the few manufacturers here that still offers this feature. In addition to the possibility of increasing the memory, there is another function: encryption. But that has only one advantage and many disadvantages.
Encrypt SD card: advantages
The biggest advantage of encrypting the SD card for your smartphone is obvious: the data on it is protected against access by third parties. So nobody can steal your SD card and read it out on another device. To do this, he needs the smartphone with which the data was encrypted.
Encrypt SD card: disadvantages
Operating system can be slowed down
This disadvantage of encryption is hardly noticeable on modern smartphones: Reading out the data is slower if it has to be decrypted beforehand. However, this usually only becomes noticeable after a restart of the smartphone and then minimally. Here, for example, the images and videos on the SD card must first be decrypted before they can be displayed in the gallery app.
Data can only be read from the smartphone
The data you have stored on the SD card can only be read from or via the smartphone. This means you cannot insert the card into a card reader, for example to copy music or a large video on it. The same goes for other smartphones, except the one you used to encrypt the SD card. That brings us to the next point …
Data loss if the smartphone is broken
The probably biggest disadvantage of the encrypted SD card only becomes noticeable when you have already hit it the worst: If your smartphone breaks, the only device that can decrypt the data on the card is gone. Even a display damage can have a massive impact on your data. Fortunately, Eric shows you here how you can still use your smartphone with the mouse when the touchscreen no longer wants:
If the smartphone is stolen, encryption doesn’t help either
If your smartphone is stolen with an inserted SD card, encryption is also of no use if the robbers manage to bypass your screen lock or hack your password. Therefore, encryption of the SD card only protects if the card is removed from the phone, for example.
Conclusion
The advantages and disadvantages for encrypting an SD card clearly show that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. Those who do not back up highly sensitive data on the card should have little reason to encrypt it. Rather, apps are recommended with which individual files or orders can be encrypted, but which can then also be viewed on other devices with the correct code.
On Samsung smartphones there are also functions such as “secure folder”. On other models, apps such as EgoSecure, EDS or SSE – File / Text Encryption & Password Vault can be used.