How to password protect a folder on Windows?

How-to-password-protect-a-folder-on-Windows

Are you trying to secure a folder with a password on a Windows computer? If you have a folder or file that you don’t want to show in Windows, you can password protect it. Password protecting a document, spreadsheet, or project folder will ensure that only users who know the password can access it. This blog will show you how to password protect a file or folder and who can access it.

Microsoft Windows comes without any password protection for files and folders. You can protect your data in other ways, and the best way to secure your data is probably by using encryption.

To secure your data with password protection, you would be better off investing in some third-party software, so keep reading for that information.

Think about the last time you had to send an important document, spreadsheet, or project to someone in your company or outside. They wanted a copy of what you sent them, but you didn’t want them to be able to access everything.

I know I’ve been in that situation before, and I don’t always have an IT guy around to help me with my problems. So, I often try to find answers to my questions online. Well, I ran across a super-easy way to password protect a folder or files in Windows 10, 8.1, and 7.

Note: Before you secure any data, make sure you have a backup of it, whether through duplication or in a backup file.

How to password protect a folder on Windows

How to password protect a folder in Windows?

Windows Vista, /7, 8, and 10 do not come with any features that would allow you to protect your files using a password; for this, you will need specialized software.

If you would like to encrypt your files and folders, you can do so by following these steps:

Start your computer with full administrative rights.

Right-click the file or folder (you wish to encrypt) and select Properties.

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When the File or Folder Properties applet appears, click on the Advanced button.

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Once the Advanced Attributes applet appears, tick the box next to Encrypt contents to secure data and click OK.

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Click on OK to begin the encryption process once you are back on the File or Folder Properties applet.

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Please note that if your Windows version does not support encryption, the encryption option will not be available. If you want encryption to work, you must format your hard drive as NTFS.

Encryption works by restricting access to the data to those with your login details. The data will become encrypted, unreadable, and inaccessible if another account is used to access the data.

Microsoft Windows XP

Windows XP is no different from Windows Vista/7/8 and Windows 10 in that the encryption procedure is precisely the same. 

How to Secure Your Data in Other Ways?

Files and folders that are rarely opened can be effectively protected using one of the many available utility tools. When you archive a batch of files, you have the option of encrypting a set of files and covering them with a password.

Users of Windows XP: Windows XP comes with a third-party compression utility tool, which, although dated, can still be used to password protect and compress files and folders.

If you use Windows Vista or 7, you can use the compression tool that comes with these versions of Windows. However, the compression tool on these operating systems does not support password protection; you must purchase third-party software to take advantage of this feature.

Create a password-protected folder manually.

To protect specific files on your computer, you can create a script that changes the attributes of a folder.

By changing the attribute of the folder to a system file, the folder will become hidden, as all system files are set to hide by default. The end-user can thus choose if the folder (containing the files) will be visible or not.

Note: This method does not make your data completely secure. Anyone with a basic understanding of computers can easily change your file settings and make your folder visible. But people will find it difficult to find it if they are unaware of its existence.

The Top Third-Party Tools

If you want password protection, then you will need third-party software. There are many kinds of such tools, some of which are free, and some that are not. From the various tools available, I recommend the following:

  • File and folder compression is possible with this free utility, as well as password protection for your files and folders. In addition to opening many file types and archiving your data, this tool has several other features.
  • WinZip: Many people are familiar with the excellent encryption utility WinZip. You can access this tool for free, but you will need to buy the full version to use all of its features. It does all the usual stuff: compress, protect, encrypt, etc., so it’s one of the best utility tools around.
  • Folder Guard: This commercial password protection software allows you to archive and password protect your most important files and folders.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

  1. Can you put a password in a folder?

    Yes. You can create a password-protected folder by right-clicking on the folder and selecting “Properties.” On the General tab, click on the Create button, and provide a password for the folder.

  2. Can your password protect a folder in Windows 10?

    Yes, – you can password protect a folder by creating a password for it. To do this:
    1. Open File Explorer and navigate to the folder that you want to password-protect.
    2. Right-click on the folder and select “Properties” from the menu that appears.
    3. In the Properties window, click on the Security tab.
    4. In the Protection Level list, select Protected with Password.
    5. Click on the Advanced button to provide a password for your folder.

  3. Why can’t I password protect a folder?

    When you password protect a folder, the files and folders inside it are not stored in an encrypted form. If someone gains access to your computer, they can view and copy the files within the protected folder.

  4. What is the best way to password protect a folder?

    There are many ways to password protect a folder. The simplest way to password protect a folder is to use the Windows file security feature and create a folder with a strong password. You can also use network security features, such as Active Directory group policies, to password protect folders on remote computer systems.

  5. How do I hide a folder?

    Windows Explorer allows you to hide folders. To do so: Right-click the folder you want to hide and then select “Hide This Folder.” You can hide a folder by right-clicking on it and selecting “hide.”

  6. How do I access a secure folder?

    To access a secure folder, you must first open File Explorer and navigate to the folder where the secure file is located. Next, double-click on the secure file to open it. Finally, password protect the file by clicking on the lock icon in the toolbar.

  7. How do I lock files on my computer?

    There are two ways to lock files on your computer. The first is to use Microsoft Windows’ security features. The second way is to use an application like FileLocker or BitLocker.

  8. How do I open my secure folder?

    If you have the My Documents folder encrypted, you will need to use a special password to open it. To open the secure folder, follow these steps: Press the Windows key + E on your keyboard to open Explorer. Go to your Downloads folder (usually located at C:\Users\username\Downloads). Right-click on the file that you want to open and choose “Open With” from the context menu. In the File Open dialog box, type in your password (it does not need to be the same as your account password for you to enter it). You will then hold down both commands + L on a computer keyboard. If you forget your file open secret password, long-press ‘Windows-L’, and select “login” from the drop-down menu, from which Windows will ask how you want to log into Windows over USB or wireless/wired LAN with sign-in triggered by the port. On the left-hand side of the “File Open” dialog box, select “Unknown Sources.”

Final Words

If you want to password protect a folder or file in Windows, you can do so quickly. This blog post will show you how to password protect a file or folder in Windows using many methods. We hope you find this blog post helpful.

At times, you may want to lock the folder that contains your essential files, and you would wish only you to have access to those files, not other user accounts, especially your kids or friends. So, here is the trick to locking the folders on Windows 10, 8, and 7.

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2 Comments

  1. Thanks Satish for providing tip to protect my windows PC files without the need of any third party software.

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