Can I Download Tails To Usb On Mac To Be Used On Windows Computer

Worried about PC privacy? Looking for a secure style to keep the bad guys at bay? How well-nigh a complete PC in your pocket, all contained on a single USB stick, that doesn't exit behind whatever traces that yous've been there?

Enter Tails: a Linux distribution (think operating system) focused on privacy and security.

On this page:

What is Tails?
Tails and online privacy
Tails security
Portability
How to install Tails
Getting started on Tails
Built-in apps

The Tails home screen is a petty spartan.

What is Tails?

The name Tails is an acronym for The Amnesic Incognito Live System. It's famously (infamously?) the secure OS of choice of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.

But much similar with virtual private networks (VPNs), which also protect your privacy and provide security, Tails has plenty of legitimate uses.

Unlike other operating systems (OSes), Tails doesn't use your computer'due south internal storage. Instead, it runs directly off a USB key and uses your computer's RAM (memory). This means everything is wiped clean when you remove the USB key or shutdown or restart your computer.

You tin save files to the USB cardinal, which are then heavily encrypted. How much you tin can save depends on your USB stick's storage chapters.

Tails has a wide-plenty range of built-in apps that the boilerplate user shouldn't discover themselves wanting, simply its cumbersome privacy and security measures hateful information technology isn't a replacement for a mean solar day-to-24-hour interval Bone such every bit Windows or macOS. Information technology'south for more specific-use cases that can vary from person to person.

Tails and online privacy

A huge amount of what you do online is tracked by at least one, if not multiple parties. Websites follow your IP address and leave cookies that track your browsing beyond multiple sessions.

Persistent logins such every bit Google, Facebook or browser accounts can record your every move, then sell that information. And governments, both domestic and foreign, have the ability to snoop on your activities for their ain purposes.

Tails uses the Tor network to hide your internet activity and block traffic.

You can use a VPN to hide your activity, just Tails goes further.

Every internet application built into Tails connects via the Tor network, which bounces your information through iii (out of thousands) relays across the earth, none of which have the whole flick of who you are and what yous're doing.

Any traffic not routed via the Tor network is blocked by Tails, which farther protects your privacy past making it difficult for apps and malware to broadcast data without your cognition.

The downside is the net runs a bit slower, merely we found Tails' built-in Tor connection felt faster than using Tor on some other Os such as Windows and not too much slower than a good VPN.

Tails security

Tails' list of security features is long and, at times, excruciatingly niche. But to drastically simplify things, many of its measures brand sure no-one can install annihilation on your computer long term without your knowledge.

And, if they practise, it'south unlikely any malware will be able to ship any personal information back to malware makers or other parties.

The nearly notable facet is blunt and brutal. Tails erases every stored file that doesn't come with the Os by default every time you restart or plow off your computer, taking whatever potentially compromised files with information technology. And you accept zero chance of reclaiming them.

If you desire to salve files betwixt sessions, you need to set upwardly a special encrypted persistent folder, into which you must transfer those files before shutting Tails down.

You also demand to adjust certain settings every time y'all log on, and even if you salvage certain downloaded apps equally persistent, that just means they'll be automatically downloaded the next time yous commencement upward Tails.This means big programs are cumbersome to employ regularly.

Portability

Because your OS and everything else is saved to a single USB, y'all don't need to carry a computer around with you lot – as long as there'south a calculator with a USB port where you lot're headed that was manufactured within the concluding x years or so.

This has advantages for professionals or travellers who are always on the go, specially if y'all're travelling in chancy locations where you're worried about device theft or confiscation.

We found the Tails installation procedure quick and relatively easy.

How to install Tails

The Tails installation procedure has many steps, but the website has piece of cake-to-follow, detailed instructions. But even though the instructions are comprehensive, it's useful to know a few things beforehand.

From the Tails home page, click Become Tails in the top menu bar to go started.

What you need to install Tails:

An 8GB (preferably larger) USB stick
Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.10 (Yosemite) or afterwards, Linux
An internet connection
A 2d connected device.

For a normal install, you need at to the lowest degree an eight gigabyte (GB) USB stick. Only we recommend a bigger one, every bit any long-term file storage will exist kept on the USB stick and not your computer.

Yous'll as well demand a 2nd device to follow the website'due south instructions to the end. This is considering, at some point, your computer is going to be occupied setting upwardly the Tails USB, and the concluding part of the prepare-upwardly is washed from your computer's boot card.

A smartphone or tablet is fine, and you tin as well print the instructions if need exist.

We found the website's installation fourth dimension estimate of ane and a half hours to be overblown. For us, it was only about 30 minutes from clicking download to firing up a fully-performance Tails OS.

Downloading Tails

When following the steps, later on you select the operating organisation yous're using to create a Tails USB, y'all'll exist prompted to download Tails (most 1.2GB), either as a straight download or via BitTorrent.

BitTorrent is the fastest and most secure method, so if you have a torrent manager we advise taking this choice – it merely took us about vi minutes on an NBN Standard Plus (fifty/20) plan.

Directly download volition likewise work, simply could have between 1 and two hours, even on a fast internet connexion.

Installation

If installing from Windows, yous need Windows 7 or later. Macs need macOS 10.10 (Yosemite) or later.

Whether using Windows or macOS, the Tails instructions tell you to download a program chosen Etcher. This is a safe and easy-to-use slice of software, and then go alee and follow the link provided on the website.

The instructions for how to use Etcher seem long, merely they're authentic and non too complicated.

Etcher is a safe and piece of cake-to-use program that is required when installing Tails.

Boot options

After you've created the Tails USB, it'southward fourth dimension to restart your figurer (with the Tails USB plugged in). For Tails to piece of work, your computer needs to boot from the USB instead of its own storage drive. It won't do this by default, so you have to tinker with boot settings.

The bill of fare system for doing this might be called a Kicking Menu, BIOS, or UEFI, depending on your computer. While your computer is restarting, somewhere on the screen it will tell you to press a button to load one of these options. The key to activate this menu will be different based on the figurer.

Often, it's one of the F keys (such as F2 or F8), but it might be the Delete key or something else. It's usually a good idea to press it a few times to make certain information technology registers. If you miss your opportunity and the computer boots up normally, just restart it and attempt over again.

One time your Boot Carte/BIOS/UEFI interface loads, you'll demand to detect a setting that lets y'all specify what drive the computer boots from. If you can't notice it in the settings, apply your 2nd device to do a spider web search for how to arrange boot preferences on your specific computer.

Observe your USB key among the list of kick drives and motion it to the offset position – its device name will likely be either its brand or model. If the USB stick's name is displayed twice with slight variations, put both at the top of the listing.

The USB drive we used was called "VerbatimSTORE N GO". Your boot preferences menu might await very dissimilar.

From now on, the computer will boot from the USB when it'due south bachelor, just volition boot from the adjacent bulldoze on the list when information technology's not.

Yous're unlikely to mess up annihilation by changing these settings, and you can always load this carte once more and change things back to how they were if something goes wrong.

Salvage your changes and restart the estimator. It should at present boot upwardly Tails instead of your normal Bone.

Getting started on Tails

Startup

When Tails starts up, information technology displays a greeting window. Hither, you can make several settings changes, just go along in listen that every fourth dimension you start Tails upwardly, all these settings will revert to their defaults and y'all'll need to change them again.

You lot can make diverse setting changes while in the Tails greeting window.

From this window, you can cull the Language, Keyboard Layout, and date Formats. Change the language to English language – Australia and the other two should automatically adjust.

Before standing, yous should familiarise yourself with the Additional Settings section at the bottom of the window by clicking the "+" icon.

Familiarise yourself with the additional settings by clicking on the "+" button.

Administration Countersign is a crucial setting fifty-fifty for casual users. For security, most Linux distros don't let you install software without typing in an admin countersign.

On Tails, this password is deactivated by default, which means you can't install anything because there'southward no password to enter. It'southward an added layer of security that stops people installing malware on your Tails system remotely.

But it also means y'all need to create an Administration Password when y'all start up Tails if you want to install software.

To do so, click Assistants Countersign and create a password in the provided fields, then click Add. This password won't persist between sessions. Every time you boot upward Tails, y'all'll need to enable Assistants Password and pick a password.

Mac Accost Spoofing isn't important unless you don't trust the owner of your local network. It creates a false device identity, so any local users won't be able to identify your computer.

But it also might hateful yous can't connect at all if your local network operator, such as an IT department, merely allows pre-canonical devices.

Network Configuration has three options:

The default allows you lot to connect to the internet.
The second (Configure a Tor bridge or local proxy) is for use in locations where connecting to the Tor network is illegal – it'south perfectly legal in Australia.
The third disables all networking, assuasive you to work completely offline.

Unsafe Browser is the only app in Tails that doesn't admission the internet via the Tor network, and then it'due south a meaning security weak betoken.

Only enable this option if the Tor browser tin can't do something, such as signing into a public Wi-Fi network with a unique user ID, which is common in hotels and airports.

A flake of patience

Tails tin take a while to start up. This is because it needs to establish a connexion to the Tor network earlier you can do annihilation online. Exist patient and somewhen you should exist notified when the connection is established.

Persistent book

By default, Tails deletes all files whenever it shuts down. Simply you can create a binder called Persistent, which will encrypt and save anything in it, using the available space on your USB key.

Creating a persistent folder volition encrypt and salve files to your USB stick.

To enable persistent book, click on Applications in the top left of the desktop. Then mouse over Tails and click Configure persistent volume on the right. Create a secure password (which will persist between sessions) and follow the prompts.

Restart Tails when prompted. Y'all'll need to enter your persistent volume password via the greeting screen each fourth dimension y'all start Tails. This is separate from the Administration Countersign.

User interface

The Tails user interface (UI) might await familiar to Windows or macOS users and it'due south very similar to Linux distros such equally Ubuntu.

Launch apps by clicking the Applications carte in the pinnacle left of the screen and use the pop-out category menus, or open up the full listing by clicking Activities Overview.

You can also hit the Start fundamental on a Windows keyboard and type the name of an app, then printing Enter or select it from the list. Desktop apps are opened by double-clicking.

To scan files, open the Files app. The folder layout works the same every bit other OSes, except for the Tor and Tor (Persistent) folders.

Built-in apps

Tails has an impressive assortment of built-in costless apps configured to work securely and effectively.

The LibreOffice suite and Tor Browser are just some of the apps included in the Tails system.

The LibreOffice suite is included, along with options for visual, audio and video editing, email, publishing, media playing and more, plus the Tor Browser for web browsing.

Installing new apps is washed via the Synaptic Bundle Director or the terminal. This can be a flake of a hassle, and just apps that can connect to the Tor network will accept internet admission.

The Synaptic Package Manager is similar an app store, just takes some getting used to.

Downloading from the web

The web browser is usually the most vulnerable app on any computer, as it tin visit sites worldwide and interfaces with many software technologies that can be used to pause your security, download malicious files or steal your data.

To deal with this final issue, Tails will only download files from the Tor browser into the Tor folder, which is a protected folder isolated to stop malware worming its mode into the remainder of your system.

If you've set upwardly a persistent volume, you tin download files you lot want to continue into the Tor (Persistent) folder. Once you've downloaded a program or file, you tin then move information technology to a dissimilar folder if you wish.

Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.