Why Encryption Is Important to You

Much has been made about encryption lately. And on some level, you probably have a vague idea about what it means. Maybe.

You might recall, for instance, that the FBI and Apple have tangled over it. (Apple won.) Most large companies such as Google and Facebook support Apple’s position. And that encryption keeps your “stuff” safe from unwanted eyes.

The problem is that the idea of privacy is just that these days — an idea.

“The way technology is woven into our daily lives, you can’t do without it,” Amy Danker, an employee at Epic Wines and Spirits, told the Oakland Tribune in a recent interview. “So what’s your other option? Are you gonna go back to a pager? I just assume that all my private information is already available through my IP address. You don’t even think privacy exists, because it doesn’t anymore, right?”

Natalie Plotnikova agrees, saying the arm of the law is getting too long. “I don’t really like it,” Plotnikova told the Oakland Tribune as she waited to be cleared through security at the Federal Building in San Jose. “I don’t want the government to be able to use my phone to see my information.”

This, say experts, is why encryption is necessary and important — especially in our current 24/7-connected environment where everything is done on a smartphone. By having your information scrambled so that only the person you are sending it to can see it, your privacy is maintained and your information remains secure.

To that point, technology from VirnetX—a company that created an app called Gabriel, which uses encryption technology derived from a CIA national security program — may be the answer.

The Gabriel app, available at the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store, was designed and built with personal privacy and security as a foundational principle.

For only $10 to $15 per year, users can take advantage of the Gabriel app and benefit from uncompromising encryption security when they talk, video chat, text, email or share photographs or documents.

No one will be able to see, hear, or intercept your communications except the party you’re in contact with because Gabriel does not transmit or store data with any third party. It’s person-to-person encryption that all but eliminates hacking possibilities.