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Purchasing
and Registration
Technical
Problems
Answers
to General Questions
Can StarCrypt
lock my notebook so no one else can use it?
No program can protect your computer. You
can protect your data, that’s all.
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Can I encrypt my e-mail?
You can encrypt a file or a text message and send
it as an attachment to email. But only
you can open that attachment, unless the person
on the other end has a their own copy of StarCrypt
and uses your password! Note that you can
change passwords for special cases like this.
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Do you use
public key encryption?
No, our software uses secret-key encryption which
is faster and much more reliable. You
can learn more about encryption, methods and how
that applies to our software
here.
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Can StarCrypt
make my file invisible so it cannot be seen deleted?
No. This can be done, but we do not
offer that feature simply because we don't feel
it is necessary. If you really need
to restrict access to your files, consider using
Windows NT/2000/XP security.
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How strong are
the ciphers?
With the exception of DES, the older US Government
standard, all the current ciphers are unbreakable.
DES only uses a 56-bit key and is thus not in the
same universe as is a 128-bit key. You can
learn more about encryption, methods and how that
applies to our software
here.
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Which cipher
is the strongest?
This is extremely difficult to determine as they
are all, except DES, good choices.
Rijndael
was adopted recently as Advanced Encryption Standard
(AES) by the US Government. It is a very reliable
and fast cipher. This is the cipher
used by StarCrypt.
Serpent
and Twofish are other AES finalists, and like all
AES candidates they were thoroughly investigated
for possible weakness.
Blowfish
has been around for some time already and is used
by many programs.
Triple-DES
is the oldest cipher, but this may be considered
a plus, in that no other cipher has been researched
so well.
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Is my password hidden
in the encrypted files?
No, so there is no way that someone can decrypt
your files without knowing that password.
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How
many characters of a password are used?
All password characters are important, the longer
the password, the better. In addition,
you should use both upper and lower case letters,
and also numbers or special symbols.
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How long should
a password be?
It depends on what level of security you desire.
To be quite safe, use a 40-bit key, more for really
top-secret stuff. Note the previous statement
as well.
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What information can be obtained from encrypted file?
Nothing of value.
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Can the computer which has been used for encryption
be traced?
No, nothing is saved that permits tracing.
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Is there
a limit on the file size or number of encrypted
files?
Windows has a limit of 4Gb if your system is Windows
95, 98, or ME. The same restriction applies
for FAT32-formatted Windows 2000/XP volumes.
NFTS formatted volumes using 2000 or XP do not have
this limit.
You might get an error message if you try to place
several million files in a single encrypted folder,
but that is almost a ridiculous number of files
to be on a single drive. If it were the case,
they can be split up and placed in several folders.
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What about encryption
speed?
StarCrypt encryption and decryption runs at approximately
1 gb per second, depending on your computer's speed.
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Answers
About Purchasing and Registration
Is it safe to buy
online?
Our software is sold through the SSL secure pages
of our online store at Smart Sales Store. You can, of course, call
us at 941-870-2297 from 9 am - 5 pm EST, M - F and
we'll take care of you offline if you wish.
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I don't have
a credit card...
You can pay by check, but please give us a call
first.
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Are
upgrades free for registered users?
YES, upgrades are free! And we intend to keep
them free in the future!
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I have
not received my package yet...
Our programs are distributed in electronic form
only. In order to install a program please
go to the
download page and
click the appropriate download link. When
the distribution file is downloaded, run it to complete
the installation process.
The newly installed program is fully functional,
but limited to 15-day trial. In order to remove
the time limitation, you must purchase the full
version.
If you have made your
purchase, please email us a copy of the receipt.
Just
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Answers
To Technical Questions
I can't decrypt my
file. How can I restore my data?
Is there any backdoor?
I forgot my password.
You probably have a universal key...
Sorry, no. No backdoor, no master key, nothing
of that kind. It is not technically possible
to provide a master key without completely
compromising security.
Try to recall your password; this is the only way
to get your data back. Remember that password
characters are case-sensitive. Punctuation
marks are also significant - check your password
carefully, maybe you missed a comma or a period.
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The trial period
has expired and I can't decrypt my files now.
Must I purchase the program to get my files back?
Yes, this is the only way the files can be decrypted.
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