The 9 Best Encrypted Drives

If you want a key that works on any computer without installing a thing, the Apricorn Aegis Secure Key 3NX is the safe bet. You type the PIN on its own keypad, so the code never passes through a computer that might be spying. Its security chip holds a U.S. government validation at a strict tamper-resistant level, and it carries a three-year warranty. The catch is the cost, which runs high for the storage you get.

The Apricorn Aegis Fortress L3 puts a keypad lock on a two-terabyte portable hard drive, enough for years of client files or photo archives. It holds a U.S. government validation at the tamper-resistant level, which matters to anyone handling health, legal or contract data. Nothing needs installing, so it unlocks on a Mac, a PC or a Linux box alike. A spinning disk sits inside, though, so a hard drop while it's running can cost you files.

Kingston's IronKey Keypad 200 brings an onboard keypad down to a gentler price. Its keys carry letters as well as numbers, so a PIN can be a word you remember. You can set an admin PIN plus a user PIN, handy when an office hands keys to staff. Kingston says the module meets the newer federal standard at its tamper-resistant level, and signed firmware blocks tampering. This size holds only 16 gigabytes, fine for documents but tight for video.

For people who just want files locked on a laptop, the IronKey Vault Privacy 50 skips the keypad and asks for a password through a small app that lives on the drive. You can set a long passphrase instead of a short PIN, and an admin password can reset a forgotten user one. After too many wrong guesses it wipes itself. It only unlocks on Windows or Mac computers, so it won't work with a TV or a phone.

The iStorage diskAshur3 is the British maker's new keypad hard drive, and its lit keys take a password from eight up to 64 characters. The case is built to shrug off dust and spills, and the security chip holds a respected international certification. iStorage built the firmware to the newer federal standard, but it hasn't finished government validation yet. It's new enough that owner reports are scarce, and stock comes and goes.

Unlocking the iStorage datAshur BT happens on your phone: open the app, enter a password or use your face or fingerprint, and the key opens over Bluetooth. That leaves room for a tiny body with no buttons to wear out. It survives a dunk in water, and iStorage rates it at the government's tamper-resistant level with a three-year warranty. A company can also manage a fleet of them remotely. Forget your phone, and you're locked out.

Speed is what you pay for with the iStorage diskAshur M2, a keypad drive built around a solid-state chip instead of a spinning disk. Big folders copy several times faster than on a hard drive, and the slim sealed case is rated to survive water and crushing. The keypad and its epoxy-coated circuits make it hard to pry open. Owner feedback is mixed, though, and the price climbs steeply for one terabyte.

Most people who just want a backup drive that a thief can't read will do fine with the WD My Passport. Western Digital adds hardware encryption you switch on with a password, plus backup software and a three-year warranty, at the price of a plain drive. Two terabytes hold plenty of photos and documents. You set and type the password through WD's software on a Windows PC or Mac, so it won't unlock on a TV.

The cheapest sensible way to carry locked files is the IronKey Locker+ 50 G2, a slim metal-capped stick from Kingston. A password app on the stick opens it, and you can add a second password for a helper or a recovery plan. The encryption method is federally approved, but the device itself hasn't gone through the full government lab review. Like any app-based key, it needs a Windows or Mac computer to open.