Mac OS X 10.4 Help
Encrypting your home folder with FileVault
You can turn on FileVault to encrypt the information in your home folder. Encryption scrambles the data in your home folder so that unauthorized users, applications, or utilities cannot access your data.
You must be an administrator on your computer, or you must get an administrator's help, to set up FileVault and turn on FileVault for your home folder.
When you turn on FileVault for the first time, your home folder is encrypted. While your home folder is being encrypted, you will not be able to log in to your account or use your computer to do other tasks. The process could take a while, depending on how much information you have in your home folder.
Before you begin, make sure you have enough empty space on the disk that contains your home folder. You need as least as much space as your home folder takes up. For example, if your home folder is 20 MB, make sure you have at least 20 MB of free space available. This space is needed temporarily during this process.
WARNING: You must create a master password that acts as a safety net in case you forget your regular login password. If you can't remember either of these passwords, the information in your home folder will be lost forever.
When you drag files into the trash and then empty it, the data of the files may remain on the hard disk for quite a time and certain tools can recover this information. To insure your data is cleaned out and can never be recovered, FileVault can do a secure erase when you remove files. Secure erase actually overwrites the files that are deleted, destroying all the data from the files.
To set up FileVault on your computer:
- Choose Apple menu > System Preferences and click Security.
- If the Security preferences pane is locked, click the lock icon and type an administrator name and password.
- If the Security preferences pane shows that a master password has not been set, click Set Master Password and type a password in the Master Password box.
- Type the password again in the Verify box.
- Type a hint in the Hint box to help you remember the password.
- Click OK.
- Click "Turn on FileVault" and read the message that appears. If you want to be sure your deleted files can never be recovered, click "Use secure erase."
- Click "Turn on FileVault" in the dialog, or click Cancel to stop.
You are logged out of your account during the encryption process. When the encryption process is finished, log back in to your account. Your home folder icon changes to show that it's protected by FileVault.