IT Security, Application Security, Cryptography & Encryption

“Many developers lack the essential knowledge and skills to effectively implement secure software development”

Added at 08/08/2024, last update at 03/04/2025

Online Security Courses and more time for security in software development projects as one step into the right direction. Security has to be implemented from the beginning. Project managers have to provide enough development time on non-functional features or make security a functional feature.

IT Security Awareness for Employees - Lecture E-Mail Security (e-Learning)

Added at 09/11/2024, last update at 03/04/2025

E-Mail Security online video lecture for Employees - Learn what to look out for when using E-Mails. This is a full lecture that is part of the Online Training Course "IT Security Awareness for Employees and Individuals - The pragmatic complete Guide to Internet and Computer Security".

(Shorts) IT Security Awareness for Employees e-Learning - Lecture Quishing

Added at 11/29/2024, last update at 03/04/2025

Cyber Security Training Excerpt: Quishing – Phishing using QR Codes

IT Security Awareness Training for Employees to follow ISO/IEC 27001 & 27002 and facilitate Audits

Added at 09/16/2024, last update at 03/04/2025

Online training or Intranet-based Learning Management Systems (LMS) are two approaches to implement regular and accountable IT security awareness training for employees. This is true for companies of all sizes and all departments. One can find reliable, comprehensive courses for general Computer, Internet and E-Mail users as well as developers or project managers. Using e-learning approaches offers executives to monitor and document the learning progress and success of their employees easily and thus prove in security audits that adequate IT and information security awareness training for employees has been conducted.

Windows 11 Certificate-based File Encryption (CrococryptFile with Hardware/Software Token)

Added at 09/20/2022

HissenIT's CrococryptFile fully supports Windows 11 including crypto suites. Besides classical end-user password-based encryption of files and folders, also the Windows Keystore using certificate tokens can be used. Hence, existing PKI infrastructure components can be used to encrypt file archives quickly also in business groups.

(Briefly) Backups - Do we need that?

Added at 11/03/2021

Secure Programming of Web Applications: Authentication

Added at 12/28/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Secure Programming of Web Applications: Session-Hijacking

Added at 12/21/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Secure Programming of Web Applications: Clickjacking

Added at 12/15/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Secure Programming of Web Applications: Remote File Inclusion (RFI) and Local File Inclusion (LFI) resp. Directory/Path Traversal

Added at 12/08/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Secure Programming of Web Applications: Open Redirection

Added at 12/01/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Secure Programming of Web Applications: Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)

Added at 11/27/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Secure Programming of Web Applications: Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)

Added at 11/20/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Secure Programming of Web Applications: SQL Code Injection

Added at 11/14/2020

We can read about numerous successful attacks on well-known web applications on a weekly basis. Reason enough to study the background of "Web Application Security" of custom-made / self-developed applications - no matter if these are used only internally or with public access.

Data Security through Cryptography - Interview with Frank Hissen

Added at 06/09/2019

IT Security Expert and Computer Scientist Frank Hissen talking about cryptography and how cryptography helps to protect our data security during our private and professional everyday life.

Internet Security: Why cryptography (and encryption) is essential

Added at 06/03/2019

Internet connections are no direct lines. Every intermediary component holds full access to your Internet traffic. That means: read, alter, redirect, discard. Or put another way: manipulate, record, log, render unusable.

CrococryptFile still in active development - Wipe function and more in preparation

Added at 08/08/2018

With this quick post, we wanted to let users know that CrococryptFile is still in active development. We are busy with other (commercial) projects, hence, CrococryptFile has to wait a little bit for its new version. The new version will include the often requested wipe function, to securely delete encrypted files.

HissenIT has reached more than 10,000 online students worldwide with in-depth IT security courses on Udemy

Added at 05/16/2018

With more than 20 years of IT security and security training experience, HissenIT publishes also online trainings in the areas of application security, encryption and cryptography. Information technologies are the essential part of any business and a huge part in our private life. Hence, awareness of IT security on the technical level has become essential. Increased numbers of reports on cyber attacks and system vulnerabilities are one proof.

Computer security – Not "Update Flash Player" but "Remove Flash Player"

Added at 04/11/2018

In light of current events, many IT news pages create headlines like "Patch your Flash Player, now!". This happens – again and again – with regularity when a new vulnerability in Adobe Flash gets out or a corresponding security patch or update is published...

Attention when choosing an Encryption solution - Weakness in Password manager of Firefox and Thunderbird

Added at 03/21/2018

An "IT security researcher" recently engaged attention on a seemingly older, known weakness in Mozilla's password managers of Firefox and Thunderbird. Core problem is the way of dealing with the master password (keyword: secure password hashing). We recommend for years to pay close attention - when choosing an encryption software - which password hashing procedure is used. Otherwise, you eventually have no real data encryption at all. We try to provide some clear background information.

HissenIT CrococryptMirror Pro v1.5 released - Software for encrypted File Backups

Added at 02/19/2018

HissenIT introduced the Pro version of the file and folder backup encryption tool CrococryptMirror. To finance the freeware project, the new Pro version costs a small fee. New features of CrococryptMirror will always be introduced in the Pro version first. Version 1.5 received a massive performance enhancement due to internal optimization. Also, the UI was revised and several stability fixes were added. Still, the software works independent and does not require an online connection or registration.

CrococryptFile Offline Training Course as free Windows Software available

Added at 05/26/2017

HissenIT published the existing and freely available online video training course "File Encryption Basics and Practices with CrococryptFile" now also as offline version as a portable Windows software - using its in-house application framwork. Since it contains HD video, the portable extractor setup is ~125MB in size and the extracted application needs ~250MB of disk space.

Open-source File encryption software CrococryptFile 1.5 released - New crypto suites and crypto settings

Added at 01/13/2017

HissenIT released a new version of the file archive encryption tool CrococryptFile. Three new crypto suites using Twofish, Serpent, and Camellia are included. Moreover, the hash iteration count in case of password-based encryption following PBKDF2 is now selectable by the user (which is backward compatible).

File and Folder encryption software CrococryptMirror 1.4 released - New password features and stability improvements

Added at 01/10/2017

HissenIT released a new version of the file and folder encryption tool CrococryptMirror. It includes a password change function and - as requested by many users - a command-line option to provide the keyfile password. Although not recommended, this function can be used to provide the password, e.g., in scripts for automation purposes. The feature can also be used to "store" the keyfile password.

German PCWorld counterpart recommends CrococryptFile in online article

Added at 09/18/2016

In the article called "Security Tools: Secure Windows 10", CrococryptFile is shortly described and recommended.

"IT Security for Project Managers" now also as Kindle e-Book

Added at 09/18/2016

Our Whitepaper/Guideline is now also available as e-book for Amazon's Kindle (English/German).

IT Security for Project Managers: About implementing security in IT projects properly – A Guideline

Added at 05/23/2016

Despite many accepted IT security standards, many IT projects fail at IT security. What needs to be considered, what mistakes and pitfalls to avoid.

HissenIT published Application Security and Cryptography Online Trainings

Added at 02/04/2016

Reports on cyber attacks have increased tremendously over the last years. Information technologies are the essential part of any business and a huge part in our private life. Hence, awareness of IT security on the technical level has become very important – for developers and decision makers alike.

Video Tutorial: File Encryption Basics and Practices with CrococryptFile

Added at 02/01/2016

In this course, you will learn how to use CrococryptFile, the open-source file encryption solution. Learn what encryption means on the technical level – as a background information to choose the right file encryption method for your case. If you care about privacy and if you are willing to do something about it, you are already on the right track. This applies for enterprise and private users alike.

CrococryptMirror 1.2 released – 32bit support and bugfixes

Added at 01/18/2016

We released an update of CrococryptMirror as version 1.2. This relates to the setup and the portable version. Beside some bugfixes, we added a 32bit version for Windows XP and above.

Say no to plain passwords: Secure Password Hashing

Added at 11/02/2015

Plaintext passwords should not be used anymore. You are probably using a web shop software framework that takes already care of this. Most application frameworks in the world do not use plain passwords anymore but password hashes instead.

Encryption background: What is key wrapping?

Added at 10/07/2015

Key wrapping is a simple technique in cryptography that is used in almost all common encryption technologies.

Open-Source and Security: Why Open-Source is not insecure

Added at 10/06/2015

Recently, I received the question if it would not be dangerous, when the source code for an encryption software is publicly available. An answer...

Password-based Encryption made easy

Added at 09/28/2015

Here is a simple example for using strong password-based encryption for non-cryptographers with CrococryptLib.

Easy encryption for Android apps – CrococryptLib 1.4 released

Added at 09/25/2015

CrococryptLib 1.4 for Android released: A library for mobile apps that allows the most easiest integration of password-based encryption, hashes and other cryptography operations. No in-depth cryptography knowledge is required to integrate encryption into Android apps.

The easiest way to integrate encryption into enterprise applications – HissenIT released CrococryptLib

Added at 08/24/2015, last update at 09/02/2015

HissenIT recently released CrococryptLib for Java: A library for Java back-end, desktop and mobile applications that allows the most easiest integration of encryption and other cryptography operations. No in-depth cryptography knowledge is required to integrate encryption into enterprise applications or software products.

CrococryptMirror and CrococryptFile ready for Windows 10

Added at 07/31/2015

We were able to test CrococryptMirror and CrococryptFile on Windows 10 successfully. Both applications run without problems in their respective current versions.

Introducing cloaked (headerless) files - CrococryptFile 1.3 released

Added at 07/02/2015

Today, we released CrococryptFile 1.3 as free download. This version includes a new crypto suite: "cloaked" archives. This kind of suite encrypts archives without headers. What this exactly means, we explain in the following.

CrococryptFile 1.2 released – GPG/OpenPGP keys are now supported

Added at 06/25/2015

We released CrococryptFile 1.2 today. This version includes support for GPG/OpenPGP keyrings which can be used as an additional crypto suite. Multiple recipients for an encrypted archive are also supported.

Container vs. File-by-file Encryption OR CrococryptFile vs. CrococryptMirror

Added at 06/15/2015

This article is about the differences of the encryption schemes between a container and a file-by-file encryption solution and the resulting privacy implications. At the end, you will see that it is also a matter of taste and application context.

CrococryptFile – GnuPG keyfile support as Kickstarter project

Added at 06/03/2015

Open-source file encryption CrococryptFile as Kickstarter project

HissenIT released CrococryptFile – An open-source file encryption software

Added at 05/10/2015

HissenIT recently released an open-source file encryption software called CrococryptFile.