Re: encrypting or password protecting files in OpenOffice and also jpg files and sending them to MSWindows users.....
Michael Fothergill wrote:
> Dear Debian folks,
>
> I use Open Office. It works OK for me most of the time. It can save
> files as Microsoft Word documents. I work with people who use MSWindows
> software all the time such as MSWord etc. I want to send an encrypted
> or password protected file to them.
>
> If you produce a word processor document in MSWord apparently according
> them you just click on some menu item with encypt on it and it encrypts
> the document for you. Whether it attaches a password to it as well or
> how the user at the other end decrypts it I don't know....
>
> But with OpenOffice it doesn't look like there is an encryption function
> on it like there is in MSWord but there is a password protection option
> when you save a file in it. If you look on google for Openoffice stuff
> on encryption on there it all reads like a chapter from Finnegan's Wake
> by James Joyce or even that it has itself been partly encrypted..... If
> you want to password protect or encrypt some files reasonably
> competently and then send them in a format the MSWindows world would
> decrypt relatively easily what would you do?
>
> Do I have to use other software like GnuPGP or whatever it is
> conjunction with Open Office? Maybe I should just copy the files on to
> CD and then send them by old fashioned snail mail. That really would
> confuse the hackers.
>
> Suggestions welcome,
>
> Michael Fothergill
Hi Michael
This question probably really belongs on debian-user@
(http://lists.debian.org/debian-user/) as it is not amd64 specific, but
anyway...
Apparently saving in MS format with password is available or under way
in OOo 3.x:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/openoffice/+bug/162057
http://qa.openoffice.org/issues/show_bug.cgi?id=39527
so upgrading may eventually be a solution.
Another option is to send a password protected zip file with the
document (e.g.
http://kagashe.blogspot.com/2008/08/how-to-password-protect-file-on-linux.html).
Zip extraction should be supported out of the box on windows. This is
probably as insecure as password protecting the document.
Most common email clients support encryption natively or with an add-on,
so that you can also go a step further and encrypt the entire
communication. Of course this requires some preparation from the
participants, unless they already posses encryption keys. However, once
set up it gives you strong encryption for all communication and all file
types.
In some countries signed encryption keys (sometimes called Digital
Signatures) are handed out to all citizens for authenticated and secure
communication with e.g. governmental bodies. In that case it is easy to
just reuse those. Please check Google results for 'gpg YOUR MAIL CLIENT'
and 'pgp/gpg RECIPIENT MAIL CLIENT' for details.
Cheers, Jonas
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