CryptPad, a privacy-friendly collaborative document, spreadsheet, and presentation creator
Collaborative writingPoster/infographic creators
Description: CryptPad is a collaborative document editor. It supports rich text, polls, whiteboards, and presentations, among others. CryptPad functions similarly to other office productivity suites but prioritises security and privacy. One of the main advantages of this tool is that sharing a document is as simple as getting a shareable URL. Moreover, the built-in chat allows different editors to talk to each other in real-time. CryptPad does not require signing up for use, although creating an account provides additional features and benefits, such as saving documents and accessing them from multiple devices. It is free and open-source, allowing anyone to access and modify its source code. CryptPad is developed by a core team of three developers and other contributors.
Evaluation: Cryptpad functions similarly to other collaborative editors but prioritises security and privacy. All its content is encrypted and decrypted by the browser, which means that no one outside the session has access to the information. The tool is available in many languages. While it may initially require some time to get familiarised with its interface and features, CryptPad is generally time-saving and easy-to-use. Basic IT skills required.
Cost: Free without registration, registration for more features.
Usability and tech notes ▼
Time efficiency Time needed to learn how to use a tool and its time-saving potential: Medium, it requires some time to get familiarised with the tool.
Interface language(s) The number of languages in which the tool is currently available/adaptable to: Available in 13 languages.
Respect for privacy What data does the tool collect and why? What security measures are there? GDPR compliant? : Very high. CryptPad keeps data private through encryption and decryption. This means that documents, chats, and files are unreadable outside of the session where you are logged in, even for service administrators. It works with the principle of data minimisation. In this manner, if the server is compromised, the database holds encrypted data that is not of much value to attackers. CryptPad seems to comply with the GDPR. See more here and here.
Saving work for future use Can work be saved for future use?: Yes, with an account.