The interface of the program has been completely redesigned.
The algorithms used for protecting data on encrypted disks, have been heavily modified, which enabled us to drastically improve the data protection aspect of the program.
Added an ability to encrypt disks without losing any information – all the information stored on the disk is encrypted.
Added an ability to create virtual encrypted disks based on file containers mounted as physical drives.
By default, encrypted disks have no signatures that can help determine that these disks were created by Cryptic Disk.
Added an ability to mount encrypted disks to empty folders on NTFS volumes.
To gain access to encrypted disks, users can now use passwords and key files.
The installer now has a new "Extract" mode that enables users to extract all program files for portable use (launching without installation).
The program can automatically play sounds files, launch programs or scripts (CMD Shell, Windows Scripts, PowerShell) upon mounting or unmounting of encrypted disks.
Added an ability to create hidden encrypted disks inside existing encrypted disks. The program supports several nesting levels for hidden encrypted disks: a hidden disk can be created as deep as three levels down.
When working with encrypted disks on multi-processor and multi-core platforms, the program driver uses all available cores for encryption, which gives a solid boost to the speed of encryption and decryption operations.
In addition to the AES (Rijndael) algorithms, the program now supports Serpent, Twofish, Blowfish and CAST6.
Added support of cascade encryption using several encryption algorithms. Users can now select the algorithms and their sequence. This capability makes it possible to increase the length of the encryption key to 2944 bits and dramatically improve the quality of data protection.
The new version of the program features a security mechanism against brute force attacks compliant with the PKCS #5 v2.0 specification. The user can select the algorithms used for obtaining the header encryption key: HMAC-SHA-512, HMAC-RIPEMD-256 or HMAC-Whirlpool.
The "CBC" data encryption mode has been replaced with "XTS", which was developed specifically for encrypting data on storage devices and drives all different types.
Added a virtual keyboard for protecting passwords from being intercepted by key loggers.
Improved support of dynamic volumes (software RAID arrays).
When unmounting an encrypted disk used by other programs, Cryptic Disk shows a corresponding notification with a list of these programs.
When mounting and unmounting encrypted disks, corresponding notifications are shown in the system panel.
You can now define individual hotkeys to each encrypted disk for its quick mounting and unmounting.
A backup copy of the drive’s header is stored at the end of each encrypted disk (can be used if the main header block at the beginning of the disk is damaged).
A new disk header import/export function has been implemented instead of the old encryption key export/import function (to/from a file).
Added full UAC ("User Account Control") support for Windows Vista and Windows 7.
Added a window with program usage tips.
Added a possibility to manually and automatically check for program updates on the program server.
Fixed a bug that occurred in the function responsible for automatically restoring the general access settings when mounting an encrypted disk.
Fixed the bug that caused problems in the work of the system screensaver.
Fixed a bug with the automatic start of the program when users were logging in with UAC ("User Account Control") enabled in Windows Vista and Windows 7.
The program no longer allows managing a database of users and their permissions. You can now use standard OS functions for this purpose.
The "Automatic mounting" feature is no longer supported. Instead, users can configure individual hotkey combinations for each encrypted disk.
Encrypted disks created by older versions of the program (Cryptic Disk 2.x) are no longer supported (due to the changes in the structure of encrypted disks and protection algorithms in the new version).
Disk encryption without the encryption of its partition table is not supported to exclude the possibility of its being damaged by the operating system. The program suggests creating a partition on such disks.
Fixed a bug that could cause the program to crash when an encrypted disk was unmounted.
