A quick and easy guide to securing your private information
Basic Information
1.
How to install SecureZIP® for Windows® Desktop for individual use
2.
Get a digital certificate
3.
Get a FREE digital certificate
4. Securing critical information
5.
Using SecureZIP to secure email communications with Outlook®
6.
Add an instruction link to emails sent to new endpoints using Microsoft® Outlook
7. Securing the body of an email that doesn’t have attachments
Power Tips
8. Using SecureZIP with digital certificates for secure desktop storage
9.
Using SecureZIP with digital certificates for encrypting email
10.
Using SecureZIP with digital certificates for signing email
11.
Using SecureZIP with antivirus software
12.
How to use SecureZIP for group file sharing
13.
Ensure compatibility with WinZip® for external transfer
14. Choosing encryption & signing options
15.
How to turn a PKZIP® file into a SecureZIP file
tips
1.
How to install SecureZIP for Windows Desktop for individual use
Installing SecureZIP on your desktop is easy. Individual users can download a free full featured version right away:
• Go to www.securezip.com
• Register for the free download
• Go to your email
• Click on the link provided
• Select “Download Now”
• Choose whether you would like to run the download or save
• Follow Windows Installer Wizard
2.
How to get a digital certificate
While SecureZIP supports passphrase encryption, PKWARE® recommends using digital certificates as a best practice. Digital certificates
offer added assurance that your confidential files can only be opened by their intended recipients.
Individual digital certificates are tied to the identity of an individual user and can easily be used with SecureZIP. Individuals may purchase
single certificates from several providers. Below are a few popular options:
Comodo
www.comodo.com
GeoTrust®
www.geotrust.com
Thawte™
www.thawte.com
VeriSign®
www.verisign.com
3.
How to get a FREE digital certificate
Comodo offers fully S/MIME compliant secure email certificates FREE for personal use.
To obtain your free digital certificate go to www.comodo.com.
4.
Securing critical information
Individuals should use SecureZIP to protect confidential
personal information stored on their PC such as tax records, bank
statements, medical records, passwords, and other private data.
Because SecureZIP encrypts the information in a secure archive,
that archive can be transferred to other media, such as CDs or
portable media devices, and the information will still be secure.
SecureZIP can create secure files in a number of ways. It is
designed to fit within your normal workflow and secures as many
files as you wish inside a single ZIP container:
Option #1: Drag-and-Drop
• Highlight the files you want to put inside a SecureZIP file
• Drag them onto the SecureZIP icon on your desktop
• Create a name for your new SecureZIP file in the
“File Name” field
• Click “Save”
• Secure the file(s) using one or both of the following methods:
— Enter a password and/or,
— If you use digital certificates, check the box next to
your name and the names of any other individuals
who you will be sharing the SecureZIP file with
• Click “OK” and you are done!
Option #2: Right-click menu
• Highlight the files you want to put inside a SecureZIP container
• Right-click on the files and choose “SecureZIP” from the
right-click menu
• Choose what type of SecureZIP file you want to create
• Secure the file(s) using one or both of the following methods:
— Enter a password and/or,
— If you use digital certificates, check the box next to
your name and the names of any other individuals
who you will be sharing the SecureZIP file with
• Click “OK” and you are done!
Option #3: Main application
• Double-click the SecureZIP icon on your desktop
• Click “Add,” located on the top toolbar
• Navigate to the location where the files you want to secure
are located
• Highlight the files you want to secure and click “OK”
• Secure the file(s) using one or both of the following methods:
— Enter a password and/or,
— If you use digital certificates, check the box next to
your name and the names of any other individuals
who you will be sharing the SecureZIP file with
• Click “OK” and you are done!
5.
Using SecureZIP to secure email communications with Outlook
It is important to encrypt email messages and attachments to securely exchange confidential files sent electronically with friends,
family members, doctors, lawyers, accountants, realtors, lenders, etc. SecureZIP automatically zips and secures email messages and
attachments when sent via Microsoft Outlook, as well as attachments sent via calendar invitations to ensure all emailed communications
are persistently secure:
• Create a new mail message, appointment, or meeting request from Microsoft Outlook
• Attach the files you want to send to the recipients
• Click “Send”
• SecureZIP will prompt you to confirm that you wish to zip and secure the email message and attachments.
You may check or uncheck the boxes on the prompt according to how you would like to process the message
• Click “Continue”
• SecureZIP will prompt you to secure the email. You can secure the message one of two ways:
— Enter a password and/or,
— If you use digital certificates, check the box next to your name and the names of any other individuals who
you will be sharing the SecureZIP file with
• Click “OK” and you are done!
Note: SecureZIP secures both the message body and attachments when sending new mail messages only. When sending attachments
via appointments or meeting requests, SecureZIP will only secure the attachments, not the message body.
6.
Add an instruction link to emails sent to new endpoints using Microsoft Outlook
To ensure the recipient of your zipped files understands how to open the attachments, SecureZIP can automatically attach instructions for
opening the SecureZIP files to every outgoing message. PKWARE offers a free zip reader for the recipients to download and use for opening
the SecureZIP email attachments. The following steps will configure your copy of SecureZIP to attach the instructions with each email:
• Double-click the SecureZIP icon on your desktop
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select “Mail” option from the Categories column
• Check the “Include UNZIP instructions” box
• Click “OK” to close the option dialogue box. All the messages will automatically attach an instruction file for downloading the
ZIP reader
Note: If email message body option is enabled, the instructions are presented to the recipients at the time of reading the encrypted email.
There is no attachment included.
7.
Securing the body of an email that doesn’t have attachments
When communicating confidential information via Microsoft Outlook it is important to secure the email message with or without
a critical document attached. SecureZIP can automatically put the email message body inside of a SecureZIP container when it is
sent via Microsoft Outlook:
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select the “Mail” option from the Categories column
• In the General tab check “Zip Attachments,” “Encrypt Attachments,” and “Encrypt Message Body” options
• Once completed, click “OK” to close the option dialogue box. All the outgoing messages will now be encrypted
using the settings you have just completed
• Create a new “Mail Message” in Microsoft Outlook, including the recipients in the “To” field
• Click “Send”
• SecureZIP will prompt you to confirm that you wish to zip and secure the email message and attachments.
You may check or uncheck the boxes on the prompt according to how you would like to process the message
• Click “Next” to continue
• SecureZIP will prompt you to secure the email. You can secure the message one of two ways:
— Enter a password and/or,
— If you use digital certificates, check the box next to your name and the names of any other individuals who
you will be sharing the SecureZIP file with
• Click “OK” and you are done!
8.
Using SecureZIP with digital certificates for secure desktop storage
SecureZIP can be used with an X.509 digital certificate to create secure desktop archives. Digital certificates offer added assurance that
your confidential files cannot be opened by anyone other than the person (or people) the file was encrypted for. Digital certificates are
easy to use and provide the user with a seamless and efficient workflow.
After importing the digital certificate into the Windows certificate store using a standard importing facility, all imported certificates are
made viewable in the SecureZIP options. To choose a certificate for encryption open SecureZIP by double clicking the SecureZIP shortcut
icon on the desktop. Once the application is opened follow the steps below to set up SecureZIP for creating secure desktop storage:
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select “Security” from the Categories column
• Click on the “Encryption” tab and check the “Encrypt files” box
• From the Method drop down select “Strong: Recipient list”
• From the Algorithm drop down select the appropriate encryption algorithm
• All of your available digital certificates are displayed in the same window
• Select the certificate (person) that you would like to use to create secure files on your desktop
• For even higher security check the “Encrypt file names” box. Encrypt file name option encrypts the file (and folder)
name along with the data inside the file (and folder)
• Once completed, click “OK” to close the option dialogue box. All the archives that you will create using SecureZIP
will be saved securely on your local system
9.
Using SecureZIP with digital certificates for encrypting email
Using digital certificates for email is very simple. After importing the digital certificate into the Windows certificate store using a standard
importing facility, all imported certificates are made viewable in the SecureZIP options. To choose a certificate for encryption open
SecureZIP by double clicking the SecureZIP shortcut icon on your desktop. Once the application is open follow the steps below to set up
SecureZIP for Windows Desktop to encrypt emails:
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select the “Security” option from the Categories column
• Click on the “Encryption” tab and check the “Encrypt files” box
• From the Method drop down select either “Strong: Recipient list” or “Strong: Recipient list or passphrase”
• All the imported encryption certificates will be listed in the window
• Select the desired digital certificate(person) to use for encrypting the email message body and attachment
• Click “OK” and you are done!
10.
Using SecureZIP with digital certificates for signing email
SecureZIP for Windows Desktop can leverage digital certificates for signing the email message body and/or attachments before
they are sent out. Digitally signing an email assures the recipient of the authenticity and integrity of the message:
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select the “Security” option from the Categories column
• Click on the “Signing” tab and check “Sign files” box
• All the imported signing certificates are listed in the window.
• Select the desired digital certificate to use for signing the email message body and attachment.
• Click “OK” and you are done!
To enable the email body and attachment signing functionality so that all the messages and attachments sent from the Outlook
client are always signed, follow the steps below:
— Go to “Tools” located in the top toolbar
— Select “Options”
— Select the “Mail” option from the Categories column
— In the General tab check “Zip Attachments” and “Sign Attachments”
— Once completed click “OK” to close the option dialogue box. All the outgoing messages will now be signed
using the settings you have just completed
11.
Using SecureZIP with antivirus software
If you have a virus scanning program you can use it with SecureZIP to ensure files stored in ZIP archives do not contain viruses.
Follow the steps below to enable SecureZIP to automatically launch the virus scanning software to scan files for viruses:
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select “Extraction” option from the Categories column
• Click on the “Virus Scan” tab
• Check on the “Virus Scan” option to enable the control. This also turns on virus scanning
• Select a virus scanning program from the Scanner dropdown list
• To turn virus scanning on or off after you have configured a virus scanning program, check or uncheck the box,
“Virus scan” on either the General or the Virus Scan tab of Extraction options
Note: SecureZIP does not install any virus scanning program. The virus scanning program must be purchased and installed separately.
12.
How to use SecureZIP for group file sharing
SecureZIP can create files that can only be accessed by certain individuals or groups. To create a file that can be used only among
certain entities:
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select “Security” from the Categories column
• Click on the “Encryption” tab and check “Encrypt files” box
• From the Method drop down select “Strong: Recipient list”
• From the Algorithm drop down select the appropriate encryption algorithm
• Click “OK” to close the options dialogue box
• Click “Add” and choose the files you wish to ZIP and click “OK”
• Once asked, enter the name of the new ZIP archive
• Click “Save”
• A recipient encryption dialogue will come up which will list all the available public certificates that you have populated
in your local certificate store
• Select the appropriate recipients that you would like to share the files with and click “OK”
• The ZIP file can be now only be shared among the recipients selected
13.
Ensure compatibility with WinZip for external transfer
SecureZIP for Windows Desktop is designed to provide strong data security. Advanced data security options are available for users to
support stronger security policies. However, using the advanced data security options can create a ZIP archive that is not compatible
with ZIP/UNZIP applications from other vendors, including WinZip. To ensure a ZIP archive created by SecureZIP can be accepted by
other ZIP/UNZIP applications you must follow these guidelines:
• Click on “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select “Compression” option from the Categories column
• From the Compression settings drop down select “Custom”
• Click on “Customize” button
• From the drop down Compression Method select any option EXCEPT DCL Implode
• Once completed click “OK”
• Select the “Security” option from Categories column
• Click on the “Encryption tab” and select “Traditional: Password” from the Method drop down
• Once completed click “OK” to close the option dialogue box. SecureZIP will now create ZIP archives with traditional
passwords and most of the ZIP/UNZIP applications will be able to decrypt the file
14.
Choosing encryption & signing options
SecureZIP for Windows Desktop offers several advanced security options. These features are designed to give a sophisticated level of data
security while at the same time allowing users to easily customize the application for daily use. SecureZIP users can change the encryption
settings based on their own use case. To change the encryption settings follow these steps:
• Go to “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select “Security” from the Categories column
• Choose the encryption tab and/or the signing tab
All encryption settings are displayed in the main window. Users can change encryption methods, choose to use digital certificate
or passwords, and encryption algorithms. Users can also choose to sign an individual file, a complete archive or both.
15.
How to turn a PKZIP file into a SecureZIP file
A ZIP archive created by PKZIP can easily be converted into a SecureZIP archive. SecureZIP uses digital certificates created in X.509
standards to encrypt and sign. Follow these steps to set up SecureZIP for converting a PKZIP file into SecureZIP:
• Go to “Tools” located in the top toolbar
• Select “Options”
• Select “Security” from the Categories column
• Click on the “Encryption” tab and check “Encrypt files” box
• From the Method drop down select either “Strong: Recipient list” or “Strong: Recipient list or passphrase”
• Click on the “Signing” tab and check “Sign files” box
• Once completed click “OK” to close the option dialogue box. SecureZIP is now set up to create ZIP archives with strong security
• Click on the “Encrypt” and “Sign” button to convert a PKZIP archive into a SecureZIP archive
