5 Good Reasons to Send Files Safely Encrypted with Whisply

UPDATED

During my time at the university – which, admittedly, already dates back a few years – I often thought when writing a paper: “How did people do this before the invention and distribution of computers?” In handwriting? – poor professors. With the typewriter? – how annoying if every typo has to be corrected manually. Long live the delete key, and of course the technical progress in general.

Students in the year 2018 are probably wondering, “How have students prepared presentations together and worked on projects in teams before Dropbox and co.?” My answer: It was complicated. We actually had to constantly meet face to face and exchanged drafts via email, which was quite a back and forth. It is not easy to coordinate the schedules of four busy students, let alone exchange documents when the free inbox was always filling up so quickly.

Although data exchange has become a lot easier today, thanks to cloud technology, the recent email scandal around Hillary Clinton shows that caution is advisable, especially when exchanging sensitive data. After all, email is considered to be just as secure as a postcard - anyone who wants to, can read along. Sending file transfer links from the cloud (such as Google Drive, OneDrive and other cloud providers) is super convenient, but some people are also reluctant to do so, due to privacy concerns, or at least have a queasy feeling about it.

For companies, caution in the handling of sensitive data has nothing to do with values or personal preferences. A responsible handling of sensitive data is mandatory, and negative incidents are bad for business.

Secure File Transfer with Whisply

For this reason we created Whisply. Securely transfer files to anyone you can think of; to your business partners, other students, or your Mom. The recipient does not need more than an internet connection. You as the sender only need a Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive account to send files with Whisply, safely encrypted and protected from all prying eyes.

There are two basic options how to use Whisply:

1. Work with Whisply in the browser via whisp.ly. You can upload the files you want to send and the program guides you through the required steps, intuitively. The entire process is end-to-end encrypted, therefore you keep full control over your data.
2. You use Whisply via its partner program Boxcryptor, which securely encrypts your data in the cloud. With a right-click on a file in your Boxcryptor drive you can start Whisply and send the file easily and securely. This works similar to sending links via Dropbox, but the file transfer is securely end-to-ende encrypted. Even if you are not familiar with encryption at all, you can still use Whisply - because the app will guide you through everything you have to do, and handles the encryption automatically.

5 Benefits of Whisply

1. Easy Handling

People like to exchange data via clouds such as Google Drive, because it is so simple. This is a legitimate solution, as long as you do not care that in theory, someone could read along. If you do care, you can encrypt your cloud with Boxcryptor and transfer files with Whisply. With a right-click on a file in your Boxcryptor drive you create a Whisply link, which you can then send to any person - simple, safe and with an optional PIN and password protection.

2. Security

As with Boxcryptor, your data is encrypted right from the start until the end, with the currently safest encryption algorithm AES-256.

3. Send larger files

Sending files up to 250MB in size is very easy, using Whisply. We recommend not to send files larger than 250MB, though. It might work perfectly well with larger files, so you can try, but we cannot guarantee stabilityof the service with files above 250MB.

4. Secure and flexible file transfer with business customers

Use this secure form of file transfer for sensitive business information. Share data with a customer, partner, colleague or potential investors via Whisply-Link, with optional protection by PIN or password. Why flexible? If you transfer a file via Boxcryptor, using Whisply and subsequently change the file, the recipient always receives the most current version of the file. If you do not want this option, you can select that the sent file can be downloaded only once.

5. Send data to everyone

Only you, as the sender need access to a cloud. The recipient, however, needs nothing more than an internet connection and a fairly common browser. This is a distinct advantage over encrypted emails. After all, encrypted emails usually fail because the other person has to use the same email program, or the keys and passwords need to be exchanged. Technical skills are not required when you use Whisply, every step is simple and self-explanatory.

Note: Before, Whisply has been struggling a little with Safari. But this problem has vanished into thin air as well, with a recent and long anticipated (at least from our side) Safari update.

Some Use Cases for Whisply

• Companies and organizations: Use Whisply to fullfil inquiries, following the "right to access", granted within the GDPR framework (Art. 15).
• Students, teachers, professors: share course materials, term papers, or presentations. Theoretically, you can even send sensitive material, such as grade lists, since confidentiality is guaranteed due to encryption.
• Start-ups: Sending privileged information to investors, customers and partners is no problem anymore.
• Law firms: Whisply is the electronic alternative to postal services or email - easier to use than encrypted email and just as secure.
• Healthcare: Secure transfer of health data is simplified, including sensitive data.
• Publishers: Protect the privacy of your authors and partners by sending confidential offers with Whisply rather than email.
• Freelance journalists, translators and creative minds: Transmit your work to your client quickly, easily and confidentially.

No matter what you ultimately use Whisply for, confidentiality is granted. In combination with Boxcryptor, file transfer with Whisply is as comfortable as sending links in the cloud. However, your data is protected by end-to-end encryption at any time. Thanks to Dropbox, Google Drive and Co. the sharing of documents has become easier and a lot more comfortable since my days as a student. And thanks to Whisply it is also safer, now.