Chip 2001 Mobile/Chip_Mobile_2001.iso/palm/tools/cryptinf/cryptinf.EXE/readme.txt

Text File | 2000-02-21 | 24.0 KB | 611 lines

                            CryptInfo 3.0

                            by Tim Norman
                           [e-mail]

                       http://www.normsoft.com/

                  http://www.normsoft.com/cryptinfo/


Table of Contents

0. Copyright notice
1. Introduction
    1.1. Registration
2. Supported Hardware
    2.1. Supported Software
3. Installing
    3.1. Upgrading
    3.2. Backing up your database
4. Entering accounts
5. Viewing accounts
    5.1. Fonts
    5.2. Quick-jump
6. Editing accounts
7. Changing your passphrase
    7.1. Encryption
    7.2. Losing your passphrase
    7.3. Idle timer
8. Exporting Data
    8.1. Exporting a single record
    8.2. Exporting a category
    8.3. Exporting all records
    8.4. Viewing the exported data
9. Importing Data
    9.1. Field format
    9.2. CSV format
    9.3. Performing an import
10. Contacting the Author
11. Legal Stuff


0. Copyright notice

This document and the accompanying application (CryptInfo 3.0) is
Copyright (c) 1999-2000 Tim Norman, NormSoft, Inc.  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

1. Introduction

If you're like me, you have trouble keeping track of all your
passwords.  You have passwords for your computer, your ISP,
your computer(s) at work, and all the WWW sites that you go to.
Plus, you want to keep track of your credit card numbers, bank
accounts, calling cards, and the list goes on!  Everyone has so
many numbers to keep track of that it's impossible to remember
them all.

That's where CryptInfo comes in.  CryptInfo is an easy-to-use
application for your Palm device that will remember all of your
passwords, account numbers, and more for you!  It sports the
following features:

- Multiple categories of accounts (Internet, WWW, Financial, etc.)
- Flexible data entry with 11 different labels (plus custom labels)
- Alphabetically sorted accounts for easy access
- Optional password protection to keep your data safe
- List, View, and Edit features to easily work with your entries
- Cut, Copy, and Paste allow you to export/import data
- 168-bit 3DES encryption to protect your data from prying eyes!
- Inactivity timer to protect your data when you leave CryptInfo open
- Resizable labels for optimal screen space usage
- Quick-jump - type a letter and jump to a record that starts with
  that letter!
- Export your data to the Memo Pad for easier sharing of information.
- Import your data from the Memo Pad!  Now you can input your data
  using your PC and then HotSync it to your Palm!  Or you can export
  your data from another application and HotSync it right to CryptInfo!
- Multiple font support - no more squinting!

This software uses portions of Eric Young's libdes library.
See the libdes.txt file for copyright and other information.

1.1. Registration

Note that this software is shareware.  If you are registered,
THANKS!  You will receive free upgrades for one year and unlimited
technical support by email.  If you aren't registered, read the
following paragraph:

If you are a full-time student or are employed by an educational
institution, then you may use this software for free for as long
as you continue to meet the above requirements.  Otherwise, if
you find this software useful, you must register it within 30 days
of installing it.  You can purchase CryptInfo through PalmGear
at CryptInfo's website (http://www.normsoft.com/cryptinfo/) for the
low price of $12.99.

See register.txt for more details.

2. Supported Hardware

In general, any device that runs PalmOS 2.0 or greater should run
CryptInfo 3.0 with no problems.

In particular, these devices are known to work:

- PalmPilot Professional
- Palm III
- Palm IIIx
- Palm IIIe
- Palm V
- Palm Vx
- Palm VII
- HandSpring Visor
- TRGpro

2.1. Supported Software

CryptInfo should work fine with most third-party hacks and other
applications.  If you encounter any problems, please send me email
at [e-mail].

Older versions of CryptInfo had problems with certain graffiti
enhancers and 3rd party keyboards.  Below is a list of these
programs and their behavior in CryptInfo 3.0.

- LookDA/eLook
    This is a combination hack/desktop accessory that suggests
    word completions for you.  CryptInfo disables eLook if you
    have the "Hide Passphrase" checkbox checked.  If you check
    this checkbox at any time while entering your passphrase,
    eLook will be disabled until you successfully enter your
    passphrase.

3. Installing

(If you are upgrading, see section 3.1)

Installing CryptInfo is simple.  Use your Palm install software to
install the cryptinfo.prc file.  The next time you HotSync, the
CryptInfo application will be available.  (You do NOT need to
install the cryptinfo-upgrade.prc file if you are installing for
the first time.)

By default, there is no passphrase for CryptInfo.  To change the
passphrase, start the CryptInfo application on your Palm device and
see section 7.

IMPORTANT NOTE REGARDING BEAMING CRYPTINFO!

Be careful when beaming CryptInfo to others using Palm's beaming
mechanism.  If they don't have CryptInfo installed, it should work
fine.  However, if they already have CryptInfo installed, and they
accept the new version, then they will lose all of their data!  This
is NOT a CryptInfo problem; this is how PalmOS handles upgrades via
beaming.  (In my opinion, this is not good, but Palm has told me that
this is how it is supposed to work.)  Third-party beaming applications
may work better.  In particular, I have tested BeamBox 1.17, and it
seems to work without erasing any data.  I cannot guarantee that it
will continue to work this way, however.  In short, remember to back
up your CryptInfo database before attempting an upgrade!

3.1. Upgrading

Before you perform an upgrade, you should make a backup of your
existing data.  I have never experienced data loss during an upgrade,
but it can't hurt to be safe.  See section 3.2 for information on
backing up your database.

Upgrading from version 1.X or 2.X is fairly simple.  Use your Palm
install software to install the cryptinfo.prc file AND the
cryptinfo-upgrade.prc file and then perform a HotSync.  When the
HotSync is completed, run the CryptUpgrade application on your Palm
device.  It will ask for your passphrase (if you have one) and then
upgrade your database.  (Note that after you enter your passphrase,
CryptUpgrade may appear to freeze up for a few seconds.  Do NOT reset
your Palm!!  It is re-encrypting your data and can take a few seconds
on large databases.)  Once this is complete, you may run CryptInfo.

Once you have upgraded your database, you should perform a HotSync
again.  This will update your backup database on your hard drive.
Since everything is now encrypted, even people with access to your
backup data will NOT be able to read your CryptInfo data.

Once you have finished upgrading, it is safe to delete the CryptUpgrade
application.

If you are upgrading from PassMan:

PLEASE NOTE!  Because the name has changed, after you do a HotSync,
BOTH PassMan and CryptInfo will be listed.  DO NOT DELETE PASSMAN!
When you run CryptUpgrade, it will delete the old version of PassMan
for you and upgrade the database accordingly.

3.2. Backing up your database

By default, the Palm Desktop software backs up many databases whenever
you HotSync.  This includes the CryptInfo database.  While this
database cannot be read on your PC (since it is encrypted), it can be
used to restore your data in case you lose the data on your Palm.

To back up your CryptInfo database, perform the following steps.

- Perform a HotSync.  This will copy all of your data from your Palm
  to your PC.  (If you have changed any of your HotSync options,
  ensure that the "System" component is set to "Handheld overwrites
  desktop".  If you don't have a "System" component, then you may have
  a 3rd-party backup utility installed, such as BackupBuddy.  Please
  consult that utility's documentation.)
- Find the CryptInfo_Database.pdb file.  This should be located on
  your hard drive in a subdirectory of the Palm Desktop software.  On
  Windows, click the "Start" menu, then select the "Find" menu item.
  Another menu will appear.  Select "Files or Folders...".  On the
  "Name & Location" tab, enter "CryptInfo_Database.pdb" into the
  "Named" field.  Then click "Find Now".  On the Macintosh, you can
  use Sherlock to search for the file.
- This is your backup database.  It contains all of the encrypted
  data you have entered into CryptInfo.  This file is updated with your
  latest data whenever you perform a HotSync.
- If you are upgrading, copy this file (do not move it) to a safe location
  (e.g. create a "backup" folder on your desktop).

After you upgrade and ensure that everything is working properly, you
can delete the copy that you made.  However, I would suggest backing
up this file regularly.

4. Entering accounts

From the CryptInfo main screen, tap the "New" button.  This will bring
you to a screen where you can enter your account information.
The "Title:" line allows you to enter a name for this account.
This is the name that will be shown when you view a list of your
accounts.  Accounts will be sorted alphabetically based on this
name.

The next 5 lines allow you to enter information about your account.
The default labels for the first three lines are: Login, Pwd,
and URL.  You can change these by tapping the label and selecting
a new label from the list that pops up.  Each line can have one of
the 11 text labels or a blank label (Select the blank item on the
pop-up list).  If you select "Custom...", you will be prompted for
a label name.  You may enter any label name (up to 8 characters)
to use for your data.

Below the 5 information lines is a text field labelled "Note" that
lets you enter notes about this account.  You can enter anything in
this space.

When you are done entering data for this account, tap the "Done"
button.  Note that if the "Title" field is blank, none of the
information you entered will be saved.

Note that if you enter more text than will fit in the space
provided, a new line will appear, and everything else will be shifted
downward.  If there is too much to fit on one screen, scroll arrows
will be enabled on the bottom right of the screen.  Use these arrows
to scroll up and down within the data you are entering.

Also note that you can make the fields longer by shortening the
labels.  The labels only take up as much room as they need, and the
rest of the width of the screen is available for you to enter your
data.

5. Viewing accounts

From the main CryptInfo window, you can view an account by simply
tapping on its title.  When you do this, a screen will appear that
contains all the information you entered about that particular
account.  From here, you can tap the "Edit" button to edit the
account (see section 6) or the "Delete" button to delete the
account (You will be asked for confirmation before the account is
actually deleted.).

If there is a lot of information for a particular account, you will
be able to scroll up and down to view the additional information.
Use the scroll arrows in the lower-right corner to do this.

5.1. Fonts

CryptInfo supports 4 different font sizes to aid in viewing your
data.  You can customize the fonts used in three locations: listing
your accounts, viewing your accounts, and editing your accounts.  (On
PalmOS 2.0, only 3 fonts are available.)

Tap on the menu icon on your Palm's silk screen area.  From the
"Password" menu, select "Prefs...".  This will open up a screen with
your CryptInfo preferences.  There are options to select a "List
font", "Edit font", and "View font".

The "List font" is used when CryptInfo is listing your accounts.  The
"Edit font" is used when you are entering data into CryptInfo.  And,
the "View font" is used when you view a record in the database.

5.2. Quick-jump

Quick jump is a feature that will help you navigate through your
list of accounts much quicker.  If you have a lot of accounts, this
is very useful.  Simply enter the first letter of the account you
wish to jump to, and CryptInfo will immediately jump to the first
account that starts with that letter.

6. Editing accounts

When you are viewing one of your accounts, you can tap the "Edit"
button to change any of the data in the account.  This will bring
you back to the screen where you entered all the data.  You can
change any of the fields and then tap the "Done" button to save the
data.

Note that if you leave CryptInfo before tapping "Done", you will lose
any changes you have made.

7. Changing your passphrase

At any point while running CryptInfo (except before you've entered your
passphrase, of course!), you can change your passphrase.  By default,
no passphrase is needed to run CryptInfo.

To change the passphrase, tap the "Menu" icon on the Palm Pilot's
silk screen.  This will bring up the CryptInfo menu bar.  On the
"Password" menu, choose the "Change" item.  This will bring you
to a screen asking for your old passphrase and new passphrase.

If you don't have an old passphrase, leave that entry blank and
just enter your new passphrase.  Confirm your passphrase and then
tap the "Done" button.  The next time you start the application,
you will be asked to enter your passphrase before you can access
your data.

If you wish to clear the passphrase that exists, type the existing
passphrase in the "Old passphrase" entry area.  Then leave the other
two entry areas blank and tap "Done".  This will remove the
protection.

7.1. Encryption

As of version 3.0, all of your CryptInfo data is encrypted with the
industry-standard 168-bit 3DES encryption algorithm.  This will help
to protect your data from anyone who has access to your PC or your
PalmPilot.  (Version 2.X used 56-bit DES encryption, which is not as
strong.)

If CryptInfo is password-protected, then your data is encrypted with
a key that is generated from your passphrase.  This means that only
someone with your passphrase can gain access to your data.

If CryptInfo is not password-protected, then CryptInfo uses a default
encryption key.  While this protects your backup data from casual
attackers, it won't protect the data on your Palm, since no passphrase
is necessary to access it.  It is strongly recommended that you
password-protect CryptInfo!

When using a passphrase, it is very important that it be hard for
other people to guess.  For maximum security, it should not be a word
in the dictionary, because some computer programs will try every word
when trying to guess your passphrase.  The best passphrases contain
uppercase and lowercase letters as well as numbers, and are at least 8
characters long.  Your passphrase can be up to 128 characters long, so
you can enter several words or a phrase.  I realize it's difficult to
type so many letters with graffiti, so it is not required that you use
a passphrase of this length.  You can bring up the Palm keyboard if
you are not "hiding" your passphrase (see section 7.4).  Tap the "abc"
on your graffiti writing area to bring up the keyboard.

7.2. Losing your passphrase

You MUST take great care not to lose your CryptInfo passphrase.  If
you lose it, then NO ONE (not even me) will be able to retrieve
it for you.  The only remedy at this point is to delete CryptInfo
from your PalmPilot and then reinstall it.  You will lose all of
your data if you have to do this, so only use it as a last resort.

7.3. Idle timer

CryptInfo has an idle timer feature.  When this feature is enabled,
CryptInfo will automatically sense when you have not used it for a
certain amount of time and lock itself.  The default timeout for this
is 2 minutes.  When CryptInfo locks itself, you must enter your
passphrase again to access your data.

If you would like to change the timeout value, tap the "Menu" icon
on your Pilot's silk screen.  Then select "Prefs" from the "Password"
menu.  You will see a screen that shows your current timeout
value in seconds.  Change this to any value greater than 10 and
tap "Done".  To disable this feature, set the timeout value to 0.

7.4. Hiding your passphrase

If you have set a passphrase, you will be asked for it when you start
CryptInfo.  You will notice that there is a field to enter your
passphrase and a checkbox labeled "Hide passphrase".  Whenever this
checkbox is checked, your passphrase will appear as *'s on the screen
so that no one can see what you are writing.  You can uncheck this
at any time, and CryptInfo automatically remembers the last state
it was in.

When you are hiding your passphrase, the built-in PalmOS keyboard will
not work.  If you un-hide the passphrase, then it will work again.
Other 3rd-party keyboards may work fine even when the passphrase is
being hidden.  In particular, I use the Palm Fitaly keyboard with no
problems.

8. Exporting Data

CryptInfo version 2.5 adds two exciting new features: export and
import.  Now you can easily share your CryptInfo data with your PC,
your friends, other Palm applications, and more!

Exporting data is easy.  You can export either a single record, an
entire category of records, or all of your records.

An important note about exporting:  Once you export your data,
CryptInfo can no longer protect it!  Please take care that you
erase any exported data when you are finished with it so that you
can keep your CryptInfo data safe.

8.1. Exporting a single record

To export a single record, find it in the main view of CryptInfo.
Tap the record so that you are now viewing the data stored in this
record.

Now, tap the "Menu" icon on the Palm's silk screen.  From the
"Password" menu, select "Export".

A confirmation dialog will come up.  Tap OK and your data will be
exported to the memo pad.

8.2. Exporting a category

To export an entire category of records, switch to the category
you wish to export from the main view.  You will see a list of
your records in this category.

Now, tap the "Menu" icon on the Palm's silk screen.  From the
"Password" menu, select "Export".

A confirmation dialog will come up.  Tap OK and your data will be
exported to the memo pad.

8.3. Exporting all records

Exporting all of your records is done the same way as exporting
a category.  Instead of choosing a particular category, choose "All".

Then follow the directions above.

8.4. Viewing the exported data

To view the data, start the Memo Pad application and switch to the
Unfiled category.  There will be one or more memos starting with
"CryptInfo Export".  These memos contain the exported data.
CryptInfo will split the data into multiple memo pad entries if
it runs out of room in a single entry.

The exported data will be in the following format:

Title: title
Label1: Field1
Label2: Field2
...
Note: Note

For example, you might have a record that looks like this:

Title: PalmGear.com
Login: Tim
Pwd: password
Note: This is my PalmGear login.

You can use data in this format to import into another CryptInfo
program.  (See Section 9 "Importing Data".)  This will allow you
to easily share information with other CryptInfo users.

9. Importing Data

Importing data into CryptInfo is also very simple.

CryptInfo currently understands two types of input data:  Field
Format, and CSV format.

9.1. Field format

Field format is the format that is described above in the "Export"
section.  It consists of a label name, followed by a colon, followed
by field text.

There are several important restrictions to this format.  The first
label MUST be "Title".  Similarly, the last label MUST be "Note".
Also, each label/field pair (except for the Note) must be on the same
line.  The Note field is terminated with two newline characters (the
Enter or Return key) and may span multiple lines.

In addition, you can have at most 1 title, 5 other entries, and 1 note.

9.2. CSV format

CSV (or "comma-separated value") refers to a very common format for
database or spreadsheet information.

This format consists of a list of fields separated by commas.  Each
field can optionally be enclosed in quotation marks to quote special
characters (commas, newlines, etc.).  There should be no extra spaces
between the commas.  Each record MUST be terminated with a newline.

CryptInfo imposes the following constraints on this format.  First,
there must be exactly 12 fields.  The first field is the Title.  The
second field is the first label.  (The colon should be included in
this field.)  The third field is the value associated with the first
label.  Similarly, the 4th and 5th fields are the next label and field.
And so are the 6th/7th and 8th/9th and 10th/11th.  Finally, the 12th
field is the note.

Here is an example of this format:

"PalmGear.com",Login:,"Tim","Pwd:","password","","","","",,,"This
is a multi-line note.
Last line."

Note that the first field uses quotation marks, while the second field
does not.  You can use quotes as needed within the same record.  Also
note that an empty entry is denoted by either "" or nothing at all.
Finally, note that the last field, the note, is made of multiple lines.
When CryptInfo is reading a quoted field, it will include newlines
in that field.

Many database programs will export their data in this format, cutting
down on the amount of work to get it into CryptInfo.

9.3. Performing an import

To import data into CryptInfo, choose one of the above formats.  You
cannot mix formats during a single import operation.

Place the data into a memo pad note.  The first line of the note must
begin "CryptInfo Import".  You can include other information after that
string (e.g. "CryptInfo Import - My PC data").

After this first line, you can enter an optional "Category" tag.  This
specifies the category that you wish your data to be imported into.
Note that if this category does not exist, or if you do not include
this line, your data will be placed into the "Unfiled" category.

After the optional "Category" line, you can enter an optional "Format"
tag.  This tag tells CryptInfo what format your data is in.  If you do
not include this tag, CryptInfo will attempt to guess the format.  It
will almost always guess correctly, but it can't hurt to include the
format tag.

This line can be one of the following:

Format: CSV
Format: Field

After this line, begin your data in the format specified.  Do not include
any extra information or else CryptInfo will become confused.  You can
enter as many records as you can fit into a memo pad record.

Here is an example Memo Pad entry with the format and category specifiers:

***
CryptInfo Import - My data

Category: WWW
Format: Field

Title: PalmGear.com
Login: Tim
Pwd: password
Note: This is my PalmGear login.

Title: www.normsoft.com
Login: Tim
Pwd: password
Email: [e-mail]
Note: This is my account on NormSoft's web site.
***

(The ***'s are not part of the record.)

Once you have entered this information, start CryptInfo and tap the
"Menu" icon on the silk screen.  From the "Password" menu, select
"Import".  You will be asked to confirm the import, and then it will
continue.  If CryptInfo cannot find the Memo Pad record, or if there
is an error parsing the data, you will receive an error message.
Double check your Memo Pad entry for errors and try again.

Don't forget to delete the data in the Memo Pad after Importing!  Once
it is in CryptInfo, it is protected with your passphrase!

10. Contacting the author

Tim Norman, the author of CryptInfo can be contacted by email at
[e-mail].  Please send any bug reports, feature requests,
and comments to this address.  Your feedback is encouraged!

You can also find the latest CryptInfo information at
http://www.normsoft.com/cryptinfo/

11. Legal Stuff

All trade names and service names are the property of their respective
owners and their use here does not constitute a challenge of this
ownership.

CryptInfo is a trademark of NormSoft, Inc.

See the license.txt (or license-reg.txt) file for legal details
on the end-user license agreement.  You must agree to these terms
in order to use CryptInfo.