Is there a cross platform solution similar to a volume like with some DMG application installers when double clicked, they open with a prompt which pops up and asks if you agree with the terms or license before allowing you to open or access the contents of the volume.
I would like to be able to do something similar with personal sensitive files I intend to share, I want to require that recipients agree to conditions before being able to view/ access the files. As I understand it DMG only works on macs though (with no additional specialized software installed).
Readmes are usually ignored by most people, if they didn't read it, they don't have to accept the agreement. That's why I'm looking for a more in-your-face solution for confidential files, say, I was an attorney or lawyer (I am not), I would not want a terms of use to be contested just because it was easy to miss. I want to be able to be able to use a compressible archive. Encryption is desirable, but not always with a pass code. I would like an option of merely accepting the agreement as the trigger / key to decrypt the volume or archive.
Lastly, I do want this to be portable, I send stuff through email attachments, wetransfer.com, dropbox etc.
Best Answer
Create a password secured zip archive of your sensitive contents.
Create a terms of use simpletext file or optionally a pdf version with the same text as these will be easily readable on just about any system.
An overly simple example:
"if you disagree with these terms of use, close this zip/image archive and securely delete zip/image archive immediately"
or
"if you agree, use _ passcode to unlock _ zip/image archive"
Create and place the password protected zip file and the terms of use plain text and/or pdf documents into an unsecured zip file.
The user that opens the content would not be able to miss the terms of use before opening the sensitive content.
If you're scratching your head. we are leveraging nesting as a technique to ensure users have read and accepted the terms of use before accessing the contents. Here's a picture of and a link to the Wikipedia article on Matryoshka Dolls to better visualize how this works.