The Encrypting File System (EFS) on Microsoft Windows is a feature introduced in version 3.0 of NTFS that provides filesystem-level encryption. The technology enables files to be transparently encrypted to protect confidential data from attackers with physical access to the computer.
EFS is available in all versions of Windows developed for business environments from Windows 2000 onwards. By default, no files are encrypted, but encryption can be enabled by users on a per-file, per-directory, or per-drive basis. Some EFS settings can also be mandated via Group Policy in Windows domain environments.
Cryptographic file system implementations for other operating systems are available, but the Microsoft EFS is not compatible with any of them. See also the list of cryptographic file systems.
Read more about Encrypting File System: Basic Ideas, Operation, New Features Available By Windows Version, Algorithms Used By Windows Version
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