Secure Your Data: A Guide to Encrypting and Decrypting Files with AES Encryption

In today’s digital world, protecting sensitive information is more important than ever. Whether it’s personal data, business documents, or any other confidential information, ensuring that your files are secure from unauthorized access is crucial. That’s where encryption comes in. This blog post will walk you through a software tool designed to encrypt and decrypt files and directories using AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) in CFB (Cipher Feedback) mode. Let’s explore how this tool can protect your data and how you can use it effectively.

Why Encrypt Your Files?

Protect Confidentiality

The primary goal of encryption is to maintain the confidentiality of your data. By encrypting your files and directories, you ensure that only those with the correct password can access the content. Unauthorized users are blocked from accessing sensitive information, giving you peace of mind that your data is secure.

Secure Data Transmission and Storage

Data breaches and unauthorized access are significant threats, especially when files are stored on insecure networks or transmitted over the internet. Encrypting your data before storage or transmission ensures that even if it falls into the wrong hands, it remains inaccessible without the decryption key.

Ease of Use

This tool is designed with user-friendliness in mind. You can quickly encrypt or decrypt individual files or entire directories with just a few commands. The interface is straightforward, making it accessible even to those who may not be tech-savvy.

Password-Based Encryption

The software uses a password-derived cryptographic key, making it easy to remember and manage your encryption keys securely. The key is derived using a strong key derivation function (PBKDF2HMAC), ensuring enhanced security for your encrypted data.

How to Use the Encryption/Decryption Software

1. Installation

Ensure you have Python installed on your system.

Create a virtual environment and install the required libraries:

  python -m venv venv
  source venv/bin/activate
  pip install cryptography

Save the provided code into a Python file, for example, file_encryptor.py.

2. Running the Software

Open a terminal or command prompt.
Navigate to the directory where file_encryptor.py is saved.
Activate the virtual environment if it's not already active:
```
  source venv/bin/activate
```
Run the script using Python:
```
  python file_encryptor.py
```

3. Encrypting Files or Directories

Choose (E)ncrypt for encryption when prompted.
Enter a strong and memorable password.
Provide the path to the file or directory you want to encrypt:
- For a file: The file will be encrypted and overwritten with the encrypted content.
- For a directory: All files within the directory will be encrypted.

4. Decrypting Files or Directories

Choose (D)ecrypt for decryption when prompted.
Enter the same password used for encryption.
Provide the path to the encrypted file or directory:
- For a file: The encrypted file will be decrypted and overwritten with the original content.
- For a directory: All files within the directory will be decrypted.

5. Handling Errors

If you encounter any issues, check the error message for details. Common issues might include incorrect file paths or mismatched passwords.

6. Important Notes

Ensure that the provided path exists and is accessible.
Use strong and unique passwords to maintain the security of encrypted data.
The script currently handles files and directories but does not manage nested directories or large-scale data efficiently. Consider implementing chunk-based processing for very large files.

Access the Project on GitHub

If you’re interested in trying out this encryption/decryption tool, you can access the full code on GitHub. Feel free to explore, contribute, or suggest improvements!

👉 Visit the GitHub Repository