Copyright: Copyright (C) 1999 Patrik Nilsson


What is WinSafe?

Introducing WinSafe

_

Introduction:

WinSafe lets you encrypt your files using strong cryptography algorithms, like Blowfish, CAST, SAFER-SK128, Twofish  and more.

It is strongly recommended to use Blowfish to encrypt your files with since this algorithm is one of the strongest and most secure algorithms. But if you don't want that strong cryptography or need another algorithm that is faster then Blowfish you can simply change it by selecting another algorithm in the options menu.

WinSafe lets you wipe your files, create self-decrypting exe's, merge files and have even a special tool which will let you scan for files encrypted with WinSafe on your hard drives.

Why choose WinSafe?

So what makes WinSafe better then the other cryptography applications out there, you might ask?

WinSafe is very easy to use, some authors seems to think just because the encryption and programming are advanced so should even the software. This is not true there are a lot of people out there which need strong encryption but don't want to spend days or even weeks just to learn how to use the application!

Most other cryptography applications have only one algorithm and doesn't let the user choose which one to use. Other have just a couple, WinSafe lets you choose between 28 different algorithms! If you know the difference between them you can change algorithm as it fits your needs.

WinSafe doesn't just allow you to encrypt ordinary files, there is even special encryption interfaces for encrypting images and text. When you then want to view an encrypted image or text file it is decrypted in memory so no temp files are needed this means even more security!

The order fee for WinSafe is very low  only $25 for a single user license! This may change in the future, so be smart register today and get all future updates for free! Read more about the different benefits you get if you register here.

Limitations in shareware version

You may freely use WinSafe for a 50 times trial period. Under this time WinSafe is fully working, you will only get a dialog when starting WinSafe saying that this is a shareware version. But as soon your trial period is over you won't be able to encrypt any more files. Though you will be able to decrypt files you already encrypted.


File Wiping

_

What is file wiping?

This feature rewrites the selected files x times specified by the user with random trash and then deletes it. What's so good about this you might think?

The answer is when you delete your files they are only marked as free space by the operating system, the actual contents of the files may still be recoverable by anyone with a low-level utility and desire to view your sensitive data. So when anyone recover a wiped files it only contains random trash and not the actual contents of the file!

How do I wipe a sensitive file?

To securely delete a file from WinSafe go to the Tools menu and select Wipe File. You should now be able to see the Wipe dialog.

To select the file you want to wipe simply press the button looking like a folder with an arrow. Select the file you want to wipe and press the Open button.

Below the field saying Wipe file it says Wipe times by default this it set to 10 times. You may change it by editing the field or pressing the up and down buttons. It's strongly recommended to wipe the file at least 10 times to make it really impossible to recover the file.

When you done this simply just press the OK button, if you haven't changed any settings WinSafe will ask you if you really want to wipe the file, if so answer yes or else answer no. Remember that if you wipe a file you won't be able to get it back. The author takes no responsibility if you accidently wipe any important files.

Wiping from explorer

You can also wipe files directly from explorer by simply right clicking on the file and select WinSafe Secure Delete. This feature will wipe the file x times specified in the WinSafe options.


How is my password stored

How is my password stored?

_

How is my password stored?

The password entered is hashed with one of the most secure hash algorithms, SHA1 (Secure Hash Algorithm) which produces a 160bit hash value.

What is a hash algorithm?

Hash functions are also called message digest and one-way encryption. These algorithms use no key and can't be decrypted. It transforms the password mathematically. Hash algorithms are typically used to provide a "digital fingerprint" of a password or file contents. This means that it's impossible to find out what the password is by looking at the encrypted file.


Merge Files

_

What's this, merge files?

This feature lets you merge 2 files. This means that you can hide a file into another. For example you can hide a text file into an image without effecting the image itself! You don't have to hide a text file into an image you can hide whatever file you want into any file you select. For example you can even hide an image into an .exe file and it wont' usually effect the .exe! Though I recommend to hide files into images like .bmp, .jpg and .gif.

How do I merge two files?

To enter the merge dialog simply open WinSafe and go to the Tools menu and select Merge Files a dialog will now pop-up this is the merge dialog.

The source file is the file you want to hide and the target file is the file which you want to hide the source file into. To merge two files simply press the button which looks like a folder with an arrow at the top and select a source file. When finished press the Open button. Then do the same thing with the target file.

If you want the source file to be deleted after merging you can check the Delete source file after merging check box. When done simply press the OK button and the files are now merged!

Note:

This doesn't encrypt the source file it only hides it into the target file. Anyone using WinSafe can simply extract the merged file, but to be able to extract it the user have to know that the file contains a merged file.

Extract merged files

To extract a merged files do the same as above but select Extract Merged Files instead of Merge Files. The source file is the merged file and the target file is the filename you want to save the merged file to. When selecting the source file the default target file is automatically written in the target file field. You may change this name if you want. After this is done simply press the OK button and your done.


Create self-decrypting exe's

_

What's this and what's it good for?

This lets you create a self-decrypting exe file. This means you can add any number of files into one single exe. This can be very useful when you want to send someone a couple of files and want it to be secure so no one except the receiver can open them. He doesn't even need to have WinSafe to be able to decrypt them. This feature lets you also password protect the files so only people with the correct password can decrypt the files in the exe.

Where do I find this program?

You can execute the WinSafe Self-Decrypter from both inside WinSafe and from the start menu. To open it from the start menu simply go to the WinSafe menu and select WinSafe Self-Decrypter. If you already have WinSafe open you can go to the Tools  menu and select WinSafe Self-Decrypter from there.

I have the WinSafe Self-Decrypter open, now what?

You will now see a dialog containing a couple of buttons, password fields and a list view. The first thing to do is to add the files you want to encrypt to the archive. This is done by pressing the Add Files button. An open dialog will now pop-up, simply select the files you want to add then press the OK button. If you have files in other directories you also want to add, simply just repeat the procedure and add the other files too (you won't loose the files you already selected, you will only add new ones).

If you want to use another algorithm then the selected one, you can do so by pressing the Algorithm button, and then select another algorithm by checking the name of the algorithm and then press the OK button. When you done all this you will need to write a password. Do this and then retype it in the field below (for verification). The next step is to select the filename to save the self-decrypted exe to. Do this by pressing the Encrypt button, a save dialog will pop-up. Write a filename and press the OK button. You will now be able to see the progressbar at the bottom working. When the encryption is done a confirmation will pop-up that the encryption was successful (or an error message if an error occurred).

The buttons

Encrypt     -  Self explanatory, lets you choose a filename and encrypts the files.

Add Files  -  Lets the user add files to encrypt

Clear        -  Clears the list of files.

Algorithm  -  Lets the user change which algorithm to use.

Help         -  Opens the WinSafe help

About       -  About WinSafe Self-Decrypter

Exit          -  Exits WinSafe Self-Decrypter


WinSafe Scanner

_

What's this?

The WinSafe Scanner lets you scan your harddrives and directories for WinSafe encrypted files. This can be useful if you don't know where you placed all your encrypted files or just want to have access to all your encrypted files at the same time.

How do I scan for my encrypted files?

The first thing to do is to select a directory (or drive) to scan in. Do this by pressing the Browse button and select a directory of your choice. If you do not want to scan the sub directories uncheck the Include subfolders check box.

As default the WinSafe Scanner scans for all WinSafe encrypted file types. You can change this by checking the These types only check box and then check or uncheck the file types you want or do not want to scan for. By unchecking the Find hidden files and Search in hidden folders forces WinSafe Scanner to not scan for hidden files and to not scan in hidden folders.

When you have set all your scan options and selected a directory to scan in, simply press the Search button to start scanning.

Scanning is complete, now what?

You can now execute the encrypted file by double clicking on it or by right clicking on it and select the top item. Which is one of: Decrypt, View Image and View Text depending on which file type you right clicked on. If you executed WinSafe Scanner from within WinSafe you will also be able to see a menu item named Open Inside WinSafe. You can execute the file properties of a file by selecting the Properties item in the pop-up menu.

What's this open inside WinSafe menu item?

This item will only be shown if you executed WinSafe Scanner from within WinSafe. By selecting this item WinSafe Scanner will close, and WinSafe will open the selected file inside the WinSafe interface for viewing or decryption of the file.


Introduction

Encrypt Files: Introduction

_

What exactly is this?

This feature lets you encrypt and decrypt all cinds of files into Standard Encrypted Files (.wsi). As default the files are encrypted using the Blowfish algorithm. You can easily change which algorithm to use in the WinSafe Options.

How is the interface build up?

The interface contains of the users directories and files on the left and a list view on the right. The list view is the list which to add files to encrypt/decrypt.

The toolbar buttons

Add            -    Adds the selected files you want to encrypt/decrypt on the left to the list on the right.

All All         -    This will pop-up a menu allowing the user to add all files and sub directories in the current directory, or just to add the files in the current dir to the list on the right.

Encrypt       -    Encrypts the files in the right list.

Decrypts     -    Decrypts the files in the right list.

Remove       -    Removes the selected files in the right list.

Remove All  -    Clears the right list of all files.

Options       -    Opens the WinSafe options dialog.

View           -    Changes viewing style of the last focused list view.


How to encrypt a file

_

Step 1: Adding files to the list

The first thing to do before you can encrypt your files is to add them to the right list. This can be done several ways. Below is a list of the different ways to add files to the right list.

1. Select the files you want to encrypt in the file list on the left and press the Add button on the toolbar. The selected files are now added to the list.

2. If you want to add all files in the current directory you can press the Add All button.

3. Select the files you want to encrypt in the file list on the left and drag them to the right list.

4. You can drag the files from windows explorer and drop them into the right list.

5. If you only have one file you want to add you can double click on it and it is automatically added to the list.

Step 2: Encrypting

Press the Encrypt button and the encrypt dialog will pop-up. Now enter all necessary information and then press the OK button.


How to decrypt a file

_

Step 1: Adding files to the list

The first thing to do before you can decrypt your files is to add them to the right list. This can be done several ways. Below is a list of the different ways to add files to the right list.

1. Select the files you want to decrypt in the file list on the left and press the Add button on the toolbar. The selected files are now added to the list.

2. If you want to add all files in the current directory you can press the Add All button.

3. Select the files you want to decrypt in the file list on the left and drag them to the right list.

4. You can drag the files from windows explorer and drop them into the right list.

5. If you only have one file you want to add you can double click on it and it is automatically added to the list.

Step 2: decrypting

Press the decrypt button and the decrypt dialog will pop-up. Now enter all necessary information and then press the OK button.


WinSafe Options

_

Always remind when wiping files

If checked a confirmation dialog will pop-up when wiping files, asking the user if he really want to wipe the selected file.

Show message that wiping was successful

If checked WinSafe will tell the user that the wiping was successful, if not checked WinSafe will only alert the user when wiping was not successful.

Wipe even if file is read-only

The name says it all. If checked WinSafe will remove the read-only attribute and wipe the file without asking the user.

Times to wipe files

Number of times to wipe the selected file.

Show secure delete context menu

If checked the user will see a WinSafe Secure Delete menu item when right clicking on a file in the windows explorer.

Show password as asteriks

If checked WinSafe will show all passwords as stars instead of letters. This is good so no one accidently looks over your shoulder and sees the password.

Delete original files as default

If checked WinSafe will as default delete the original files when encrypting/decrypting them.

Show WinSafe encrypt context menu

If checked the user will see a WinSafe Encrypt menu item when right clicking on a file in the windows explorer.

System

This lets the user associate or unassociate WinSafe encrypted file types.

Algorithm

Lets the user change which encryption algorithm to use.


Introduction

Encrypt Images: Introduction

_

What is this?

This feature lets you encrypt and view images inside WinSafe. When viewing an encrypted image it is decrypted in memory. In this way there won't be any temporary files. WinSafe supports the following images: Windows Bitmap (.bmp), JPEG (.jpg), GIF(.gif) Zsoft Paintbrush (.pcx), TIFF (.tif) and WinSafe Encrypted Images (.wsi).

Viewing an encrypted file

When you select an encrypted file in the file list a password dialog will pop-up. If you enter a correct password the image will appear on the right panel. If you already viewed an encrypted file and select another with the same password. The image will automatically be decrypted and shown in the right panel. If the image has another password then the last entered, the password dialog will appear again.

The toolbar buttons

Encrypt       -   Encrypts the selected image.

Decrypt       -   Decrypts the selected image.

Full Image   -   Opens the current image in a window.

Fit Image     -   Zooms the current image to fit exactly in the right panel.

Full Screen  -   Shows the current image in full screen.

Options       -   Opens the WinSafe options.

View           -   Changes viewing style of the last focused list view.

Track bar     -   Zooms the image.


Registering WinSafe

Register WinSafe

_

Registration

By registering WinSafe you will receive the following benefits:

• You will be able to encrypt files after your trial period is over.

• Free updates for all future versions even if the author raises the registration fee.

• No more nags or shareware notices.

• Registered users get their support questions answered faster and before unregistered users.

Pricing

The price for a single user license is only US $25. Don't let the price fool you. US $25 for WinSafe is extremely cheap and will probably change soon to a higher price. So be smart register today and get the above benefits for only US $25!

Registration methods

There are two methods for registering WinSafe:

Online Ordering

Order online with your credit card and receive your registration code within 24 hours!

Postal Mail Ordering

Order WinSafe by postal mail.


Order by postal mail

Postal Mail Ordering

_

Order by postal mail

To order by postal mail send US $25 in cash or check to the following address:

Patrik Nilsson

Varngatan 19

681 52 Kristinehamn

Sweden

The mail has to contain your name and email address. If you cannot send US dollars your welcome to email the author at patrni@hem2.passagen.se and we can discuss if it's possible to register with the currency of your country.

If you want you can use this order form.

Once the author receives your payment he will send your registration number by email.


Online Ordering

_

Order online with your credit card

To order online with our secure order form and receive the serial number within 24 hours, please go to the following link: https://www.setsystems.com/cgi-bin/buy-winsafe


Order Form

To print this form, click Print.

_________________________

Name:	Date:

Company:

Mailing address:

Country:

Electronic Mail address:

Homepage:

How did you hear about WinSafe?:

Comments:

To register WinSafe mail this form and payment to Patrik Nilsson, Varngatan 19, 681 52 Kristinehamn, Sweden.


Contacting the author

_

Contacting the author

You can contact the author of WinSafe by emailing: patrni@hem2.passagen.se. You can also visit the WinSafe webpage at: http://WinSafe.cjb.net.

Registering WinSafe

Click here for information on how to register WinSafe.


Encrypt Dialog

_

Encrypt Dialog

To encrypt a file you have to enter a password and then repeat it for verification. If the Encrypt to specified directory is checked the file(s) will be encrypted to the directory specified in the Encrypt to directory field.

If the Delete original files if checked. The original file(s) will be deleted after successful encryption.


Decrypt Dialog

_

Decrypt Dialog

To decrypt a file you have to enter a password in the password field. If the Decrypt to specified directory is checked the file(s) will be encrypted to the directory specified in the Decrypt to directory field.

If the Delete original files if checked. The original file(s) will be deleted after successful decryption.


Encrypt an Image

Encrypt/Decrypt an image

_

How do I encrypt an image?

To encrypt an image simply select the image you want to encrypt and press the Encrypt button and then fill in all necessary information and press the OK button. That's it!

How do I decrypt an image?

To decrypt an image simply select the image you want to decrypt in the file list and press the Decrypt button and then fill in all necessary information.


Introduction

Encrypt Plain Text: Introduction

_

What is this?

This feature lets the user encrypt plain text into WinSafe Encrypted Text files (.wst). The text need to have at least 20 characters. When viewing an encrypted text it is decrypted in memory. In this way there won't be any temporary files.

Viewing an encrypted text file

To view an encrypted text file go to the file menu and select Open or press the Open button, an open dialog will appear. Then select the encrypted file you want to open. When that is done you will be promted to enter a password do that, and then press the OK button. When you done that the encrypted file has been opened.

The toolbar buttons

New      -  Creates a new text file.

Open    -  Open a text or WinSafe encrypted text file.

Save     -  Saves the text to a file.

Cut       -  Cuts the selected text into the windows clipboard.

Copy     -  Copies the selected file into the windows clipboard.

Paste    -  Paste the contents from the the windows clipboard.

Delete   -  Completely removes the selected text.

Undo     -  Undo your last action.

Encrypt  - Encrypts the selected text.

Decrypt  - Decrypts an selected file.

Options  - Opens the WinSafe options.


Saving and decrypting

__

How does the saving work?

If you have started a new text and want to save it, simply press the Save button and it will be saved as a WinSafe Encrypted Text File. If you already have a WinSafe Encrypted Text File open it will automatically be updated with the encrypted contents of the current text. If you have an ordinary text file open and press the save button the text file will not be encrypted. It will only be updated with the current contents. To encrypt an open text file you will have to press the Encrypt button.

The Encrypt button will always encrypt the current text to a given file name. The Save button will encrypt the current text to a given file name if the text is not a WinSafe Encrypted Text File or if you started on a new text. But if you have an WinSafe Encrypted Text File open and press the Save button the encrypted file will be updated.

How do I decrypt a file?

To decrypt a file simply press the Decrypt button. If you have an encrypted file open at the time you press the Decrypt button a dialog will pop-up where you enter your password in. But if you don't have an WinSafe Encrypted Text File open you will first be promted to select one in a dialog which will pop-up.


Update Wizard

_

What's this?

This util lets you search for a newer version of WinSafe than the one you are currently using.

How does it work?

To search for an updated version of WinSafe first simply open the update wizard from the start menu.

You will now see the welcome screen. Before doing anything else you will have to exit all WinSafe applications and tools if you have them opened. When you done that, click the Next button. The update wizard will now search for an updated version of WinSafe. If one was found you will see what's new in this version. If not, you are already using the latest version, and will have to exit the wizard. Do so by clicking on the Cancel button.

If a new version was found and you want to upgrade WinSafe, click the Next button. The wizard will now download the upgrade files and install them.


About WinSafe

_

WinSafe

___________________________

Copyright 1999 © Patrik Nilsson

CREDITS

PRODUCTION AND DESIGN    Patrik Nilsson___________

  SPLASH SCREEN    Andrew Crocker__

   BETA TESTERS    Daniel Leppenen

                             David Larusson

                              Jonne Svensson

                       Martin Hult

                               Richard Nystrom

Special Thanks

Andrew Crocker

Martin Hult

Many thanks to Delphi Encryption Compendium and the RX Library from the RX team for their great components used in this program.