Sandboxie 5.31.6 is out, compatible with W10 1909

bo elam said:

Hi phrab. In both, Registry access and File access you can restrict access to the file system or the registry or open access to the file system or registry. Regarding the Registry section, remember, there is no need whatsoever to touch it. So this post is about the File access section.

Some users have personal and sensitive files all over the computer. That could make enabling this settings for all your sensitive files take time. It is better and safer to have important files in one or two folders. And then have subfolders.
There are many variations on how to go to restrict the access to your personal files, I could spent the rest of the night writing just about this particular subject and not be finished when the night is over. So, is better to concentrate on this one way to make it short and easy to implement.

Keep this in mind. Since you will be blocking access to your personal files and folders, if for example, you want to upload a file somewhere, you will not be able to do it if the file is protected or if it is located within a protected folder. Sandboxie will give you a message telling you something about it. Usually when I want to upload something, I copy the file and put it in my desktop and upload it from there. Also as a test, to make sure you have set protection correctly, try uploading something thats blocked, to see what happens.
Bo

Hi Bo:
Thank you for this outstanding tutorial. It will take me at least a few days to do this, but your ideas about blocking personal information & keeping that information in one or 2 places is an excellent idea. BTW, call me Phil; I use phrab just as a username.

bo elam said:

You are welcome, Phil. Take your time.

Bo

Hi Again Bo:
I have a question. My documents are fairly well organzied (similar to a filing cabinet). However, as I go through years of documents by searching for things like social security numbers, drivers license numbers, date of birth, etc. for myself & family, I find that I have them scattered all over the place. (I have separate folders for each family member)

So I'm wondering. If I ever get a virus or trojan (which, so far, I've never had on my personal computer, as I'm extremely careful what I download), Sandboxie won't help once it's on my computer. As I understand Sandboxie, I can block access to all my documents, which would prevent any possibility of a virus or program from uploading any documents. To allow an upload, I could copy such a file to my desktop or other folder that wasn't blocked, & attach or upload from there. I would have to do that with Windows File Explorer that was not Sandboxed.

I seem to recall that you said in an earlier post, that you run File Explorer within Sandboxie, something that I rarely do.

Do you think it would be easier for me just to restrict all access to my Documents folder (to prevent uploads) & just use the method you described (copy & paste outside of Sandboxie) when I want to upload, rather than hunt down all my personal information?

(By the way, I did discover that I could move all personal info to one folder & leave shortcuts to those documents in their original folders. That way, I would still be able to find all my documents where I would expect them, but not be able to access them with a Sandboxed File Explorer, even by clicking a shortcut in a folder that wasn't restricted.)

Thanks again for all the advice!

bo elam said:

Opening files via a sandboxed File Explorer is the most secure way to run files with Sandboxie. So, I use a sandboxed version of File Explorer to open files that I am not 100% sure what type of file they are. This happens rarely, but it happens sometimes.

But keep this in mind. File Explorer should not be forced. It can be run sandboxed but it can not be forced. If you try to force it, Sandboxie gives a message with a warning. You can run it using the shortcuts in the menus, or by right clicking a folder and choosing to run it sandboxed or create a sandboxed shortcut. The latter is the easy way. You create the shortcut and place it in your desktop, taskbar (that's were I have it) or the Start menu.

For the occasions you need to upload, you could also set it like this. Have an extra sandbox setup without this restrictions. So, when you want to upload something, you open a fresh browsing session using this sandbox, do the upload, and when you finish, you get out and delete the sandbox. And then go back to using your more restricted sandbox.

Excellent advice & I will try this. Much easier than searching all over my computer for sensitive files. Thank you again for your time & expertise!

bo elam said:

Sandboxie 5.33.1 was released earlier today.

Sandboxie 5.33.1 is available for download - Sandboxie Forum - Sandboxie - Sophos Community

It fixes the problem described in the thread below.

[FIXED] Microsoft Accounts - Sandboxie Forum - Sandboxie - Sophos Community

In short, the fix makes it possible to login your Microsoft accounts without the need of using a workaround. I dont use MS accounts so I cant confirm the fix indeed works but it should be fine.

And FWIW, Sandboxie 5.33.1 is working fine in my W10 18363.535 as all I do sandboxed is as good as always.

Bo

Hi @bo elam:
I'm using Sandboxie 5.49.0 (64-bit). I was notified today that Sandboxie-Plus-x64-v0.8.2.exe & Sandboxie-Classic-x64-v5.50.2.exe were out. However, when I went to the thread at Sandboxie Plus 0.8.5 | Wilders Security Forums, which said that Sandboxie Plus 0.8.5 was out, so I'm somewhat confused.

I'm wondering what version you're using, since you're very knowledgeable about Sandboxie & whether you've tried Sandboxie Plus.

bo elam said:

Hi phrab. Regarding what Plus version is the latest, perhaps get in the habit of using the link below as it can make things simple for you. Quickly, by looking at the versions numbers in the threads there you ll figure out which Plus version is the latest.

Sandboxie (SBIE Open Source) Plus & Classic | Wilders Security Forums

Regarding what Sandboxie version I am using, I am using 5.33.6 and haven't tried Plus.

Sorry it took a while to answer your questions. Best regards.

Bo

Thanks, Bo. I just got back in town myself. I've got the link now.