4 Reliable Encryption Tools for Pre-Android Marshmallow Devices

If your Android device is running below version 6.0 Marshmallow, it's completely wide open since they weren't encrypted by default. This is fine since encryption isn't a life and death concern, and if you really wanted full encryption, you can do so on your Android device.

Below are some helpful tools that let you arm your pre-Marshmallow Android device with full encryption, which hopefully gets the job done. Check out which supplemental tools will best suit your encryption needs.

Andrognito 2

If you're searching to get your files encrypted on Android, Andrognito 2 is a great way to go. The great thing about this app is that you'll be able to use "military-grade" AES 256-bit encryption to secure your individual files. This means you don't have to worry about prying eyes getting access to your important data. This app also supports invisible mode, a "fake crash" mode to deceive unwanted users, dynamic PIN numbers, automatic backup, file import, and themes.

Boxcryptor

Do you have the need to encrypt something before you share it to a popular cloud storage service? Well that's possible with Boxcryptor. The app supports a multitude of storage providers (mainly Google Drive, Dropbox, and Microsoft OneDrive). When you lock up your file, it's secured and encrypted with the AES-256 algorithm, and both encryption and decryption is done directly on the device itself.

The free version just allows for basic encryption, but if you buy the Unlimited version of the app, you'll also be able to obfuscate individual filenames as well. Such a feature is incredibly useful when you're looking to secure your data and files from prying eyes.

Vault

Vault is a simple and pretty straightforward, unlike the other apps on this list. In fact, it's an easy-to-understand program, which is perfect for those who don't normally know a lot about encryption. However, if your goal is to just to protect different types of files, this application should be considered a serious contender.

The app supports pdfs, images, videos, and mp3 files. The encryption algorithm used is 256-bit AES, and it also supports password protection, as well as native camera support, automatic logout, break-in alarms, and even a stealth mode. If you need a basic encryption app, then you might just need Vault.

SSE

Even though SSE is not as modern as Andrognito 2, this app proves to be an entire encryption tool set for Android doesn't have to be. With SSE, you get more than just a file encryption tool -- you'll also get a vault to store all your important password information, a text encryption tool to lock up important documents, and the ability to encrypt entire directories or individual files.

In addition to that, the SSE encryption tool also comes with a secure password generation tool and a clipboard cleaner. Everything is run with particularly strong encryption algorithms, such as AES 256-bit, RC6 256-bit, Serpent 256-bit, Blowfish 448-bit, Twofish 256-bit, GOST 256-bit (and more in the pro version).

Use Privacy to Make Your Online Shopping Safer

One of the benefits of online shopping is that it saves a lot of time and lets you find the best prices without leaving the comfort of your home. It's now easy getting those things you want or need as putting them in your virtual cart and checking out. However, during the checkout process, do you slightly hesitate whenever you enter your credit card number? Well, don't worry because it's completely normal as you are worried that your credit card number is going to fall into the wrong hands.

If you usually shop online, then you're going to love Privacy. What this app does is it generates a one-time credit card number for your online shopping that will only be valid for one purchase. This will repeat itself every time you buy something online. This way you will never have to give your true credit card number, and as a result it minimizes the chances of you becoming a victim to identity theft. You will, though, have to give your information to Privacy in order to complete your online purchases.

Here's how to sign up and learn about the great features of Privacy.

How to Sign Up

The sign up process is pretty simple and easy. To start, you need to fill up a short form wherein you will be asked to enter your email, password, address, name, and birthdate. The last step would be to connect the bank account you will be using for your online purchase, and Privacy works with banks such as Citibank, Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo.

Your login information is transferred through a safe TLS (SSL) connection. Privacy also uses 256-bit encryption to keep your information secure while transferring your login details. You will also be asked to install the Privacy Chrome extension to make your online shopping a lot easier. At the moment, the extension is available for Chrome and Firefox only, but support for Safari and Internet Explorer are on the way.

Other Cool Features

At checkout you will notice a small Privacy icon next to the credit card field, and when you click on it Privacy will automatically create a new virtual credit card particularly for the website you are shopping on.

You will have the chance to choose from what account you want the money to be withdrawn from, similar to a debit card. You can either use Privacy's mobile app or the web app. To cancel cards from there, pause them or set charge limits that go from $1,000 per day and $2,000 per month.

You can also have a credit card number for a specific service. For example, you can create an alternative credit card number only for your Hulu subscription. That credit card number will be used only for that and nothing else.

You can also avoid those annoying 30-day free trials that make you give your information to try their service. This way, if you forget to cancel it on time, you can just eliminate that Privacy number you had for it.

Highly Recommended Devices That Will Increase Your Productivity

Professionals who want to be highly productive are always on the lookout for tools to make their work faster, simpler, and more efficient. Check out some of the coolest tech devices that will get your productive juices in the next level.

Dell UltraSharp 34-inch Curved Monitor	Using a curved monitor eliminates the need for dual monitors, offers 21:9 aspect ratio and 3440 x 1440 resolution. The idea of curved monitors is that by curving the image slightly forward, the world you're watching seems to 'wrap around' you more, entering slightly more into your peripheral vision, thus drawing you deeper into the world you're watching. Curved monitors also enhance the sense of depth because curving the edges of the image towards the viewer enhances the visual perception of depth in what you're watching. You can find these for as low as $750 at Amazon.
Microsoft Surface Book	The world's first Microsoft-branded laptop provides high-end graphics, a powerful stylus, solid design and aesthetics, and 2-in-1 tablet and notebook versatility. It can be a pleasant experience especially for graphic designers, project managers, Microsoft Office power users, photographers, and other types of creative professionals. You may feel a bit awkward with its hinge design and its heaviness, but it is compensated by the device's mix of standard laptop, touchscreen, and pen computing.
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge	There are two kinds of feedback people give to the Edge edition of Samsung's Galaxy phones -- it's either they hate it or they love it. For some, they appreciate the phone's elegant design, but for some they find it annoying because they often hit the curved side of the screen unintentionally. The S7 Edge has a fantastic display, zippy processor, fast fingerprint scanner, and a top notch camera.
Apple Magic Trackpad 2	One of the best way to boost your productivity, especially if you're a Mac user, is to get the Apple Magic Trackpad 2. Force Touch is the new pressure-sensitive technology from Apple that promises to change the way we interact with our Macs by offering shallow and deep layers of interaction on the trackpad.
iPad Pro with Apple Pencil	For some professionals and Apple enthusiasts, they consider the iPad as a laptop replacement (or companion) because it forces them to focus on one task at a time -- whereas multitasking provides a big chance of getting distracted. For them, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is the tablet to beat. The humongous screen (with 2732 x 2048 resolution) is a huge canvass that can be used for drawing, editing photos, looking at highly visual websites, viewing documents, and marking up files and images with the new Apple Pencil.
Samsung Galaxy TabPro S	The Galaxy Tab Pro S is a Windows 10 Pro slate with solid specs and great integration with Samsung smartphones. It offers Microsoft Surface-like capabilities, starts at $800, and gives you phone notifications and lets you respond to texts straight from the tablet. This 12-incher is more tablet than a laptop, so it's considered to be more of a competitor with the iPad Pro than the Surface Book. As a pure tablet, it's one of the best Windows 10 slates you can buy out there.