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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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Do you encrypt your drives and why or why not? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 1 day ago by monovergent@lemmy.ml to c/linux@lemmy.ml

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I was recently intrigued to learn that only half of the respondents to a survey said that they used disk encryption. Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows have been increasingly using encryption by default. On the other hand, while most Linux installers I've encountered include the option to encrypt, it is not selected by default.

Whether it's a test bench, beater laptop, NAS, or daily driver, I encrypt for peace of mind. Whatever I end up doing on my machines, I can be pretty confident my data won't end up in the wrong hands if the drive is stolen or lost and can be erased by simply overwriting the LUKS header. Recovering from an unbootable state or copying files out from an encrypted boot drive only takes a couple more commands compared to an unencrypted setup.

But that's just me and I'm curious to hear what other reasons to encrypt or not to encrypt are out there.

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[–] southsamurai@sh.itjust.works 5 points 1 day ago

It's one of those things where it depends on the computer. My old box that's running win 7 has nothing but music and backed up media files on it, isn't connected to the internet at all, and there's really no point to it being encrypted.

My laptop leaves the house, and is connected, so it gets the treatment. My general purpose PC is, though that was more just because of a random choice rather than a carefully chosen decision. I figured I'd try it for a few weeks, then nuke it if it was a problem. It hasn't been, and I haven't needed to do anything to it that would require a change.

The other people in the house have chosen not to.

I'm not certain I would encrypt my main desktop again, just because it's one more thing to do, and I'm getting lazy lol. I don't have any sensitive files at all, and if things in the world get so bad that some agency is after me, I'm going to be hiding out up in this holler I know, not worrying about leaving a computer behind. Won't be power anyway, and the only shit they'd find is some pirated files.

I'd be more worried about my phone and my main tablet than any of the PCs, and those would either go with me, or get melted down before I left. Thermite is cheap and easy.