Microsoft's BitLocker can help you keep your files save

So far, if you wanted to keep the files in, say, your laptop safe, you had used products like Utimaco SafeGuard Easy or PGP's new Whole Disk Encryption (WDE). But, Microsoft is not letting other products grab the whole market. Instead, it is introducing a feature called BitLocker Drive Encryption (BDE) on Windows Vista operating system.

At this point, there's already quite a lot of information available regarding the BitLocker technology, TechNet being one. But what would this kind of feature mean for software developers? Think about the older Encrypting File System (EFS). Do you need to know this feature exists?

The answer is yes and no. As for your application, using EFS is transparent; you can continue to use your files exactly the same way even if they are encrypted by EFS. But, as a developer you also need to think about security, and it is your part to educate that your customers can use EFS to enhance the security of your application. So at least for performance, security and troubleshooting purposes, yes, you need to be aware of EFS. The exact same applies to BitLocker. And of course, these two technologies can help you keep your own files secure, too.