Can encrypted/password protected USB devices be mounted to a PS3 console and be accessed?

I recently got a PS3 Slim, 120GB model, with 4.13 (or was it 4.31?) installed as the last update. I also only just found out there is no way to password protect your User Account on it, and so your games, files, internet history, movies and other things that I want to only be accessible to me.

I know that you can take advantage of the Parental Control system and set it to Level 1 to restrict browser use, movies and games, but I'm more concerned about my photos and videos on the HDD.

So I thought that I could put them on a USB (the ones I wanted to be accessible to only me) and encrypt it with a passcode, and have it prompt me before opening and exploring.

Is this possible at all?

Also, as a note: I would be open to installing 3rd-party software to do this or similar.

Solution 1:

Short Answer: No

Long Answer: The problem is that consumer USB drives themselves can't be intrinsically encrypted. All the drive "knows" is that you are putting data on the drive, and the drive doesn't care if that data is a song, random garbage, or encrypted data. (Incidentally, encrypted data looks a lot like random garbage usually.)

This means that what you really need is software on the PS3 itself that will make encrypted "stuff" and put it on your thumb-drive. Because the stuff you want encrypted is part of the operating system, you need to make changes to how the OS works. In theory, Sony might one day write software that allows this, but I wouldn't hold your breath. The only other way is to jailbreak your PS3 and then hack (modify) the OS so that it encrypts its data and asks for a password on boot.

So, in theory you can. In practice, it would probably be easier, faster, and cheaper to buy a safe and lock your PS3 in the safe when you're not using it.