There may be tons of files lying on your hard drive which contain sensitive information such as webmail passwords, banking information and so on, leaving those files unencrypted can get you into a lot of trouble, if someone gets access to them.

Technically speaking,encryption is the process of transforming information using an algorithm (called cipher) to make it unreadable to anyone except those possessing special knowledge.

So how do you encrypt files? There are several free tools that will allow you to encrypt files with ease, here is a list of tools that you can download and encrypt your files for free.

TrueCrypt (Review ^[1]) – TrueCrypt, is a utility, which fits most of the encryption requirement of most of the computer nerds, and the best part is, it is FREE. Download TrueCrypt ^[2]

Encrypti Encrypti is a multi platform, easy to use encrypting tool for keeping your files secure. This application offers portability of encrypted files between various platforms. Download Encrypti ^[3].

WinFileCrypt WinFileCrypt is a simple Win32 application to encrypt and checksum files of just about any size. Uses 3DES cipher-block-chained encryption, with a 128 bit key. It makes it dirt simple to protect your sensitive files. Download WinFileCrypt ^[4].

whbEncrypter – whbEncrypter is a very simple variable encryption program to encrypt and decrypt a file based on a passkey provided based on the user. Download whbEncrypter ^[5].

Do you use any other software to encrypt your files? Do share about them with us through your comments.