XP File Encryption

[Juice Box]

So, a few months ago, I was messing around with XP file encryption, and ended up encrypting about a few dozen important files. I just recently formatted the OS, and in the process changed my login and the computer name. Now, I can see the files, and see that they are in fact encrypted...however I cannot access/use them at all.

I can see in the encryption details that it is only registered to my old username on my old computer name. My question is...is there anyway I can create a certificate or something that will allow me to un-encrypt them? They are important school documents that I'd like to be able to access if I need to.

Any ideas?

 

[Nothinman]

Since you formatted the OS you lost the certs used to encrypt the files, you can't just create a new cert to decrypt them otherwise the encryption would be worthless. Your files are gone.

 

[stash]

Yep. Sorry. Got a backup?

 

[Juice Box]

Originally posted by: Nothinman
Since you formatted the OS you lost the certs used to encrypt the files, you can't just create a new cert to decrypt them otherwise the encryption would be worthless. Your files are gone.

I feared this might be the case....I suppose I was looking into it more hoping that there might be some sort of work-around that would help me out....

 

[Nothinman]

If there was a backdoor to easily decrypt the files the encryption would be useless.

 

[Platypus]

No, you're hosed.

 

[stash]

Sure there's a workaround. Brute force the 256-bit AES encryption. If you can figure out a way to do that in something less than a trillion years, the NSA will be very interested in hiring you.

 

[gsellis]

Sorry, as stated above, you are hosed. Key store and recovery has been the one weakness of XP encryption. The hassle makes it almost worthless because you force IT management skills on a non-IT pool of folks*.


* - OT rant - That argument - "they hired us to do IT, so the secretary in legal does not have to." - Man, I hate having to dump tape backup, tape rotation, and offsite responsibilities on folks that should be doing what we really hired them for. I really like folder redirection of My Documents to a server we can manage and backup daily or incrementally!