How to encrypt a folder?

Table of Content

• How to enable device encryption on Windows 10 Home
• Encrypting files in Windows using BitLocker
• This Credit Card Lifehack Saves Me Cash Every Single Day
• How Would You Encrypt your File and folder in Windows 10 Using Inbuilt Features?
• Encrypt Files or Folders in Windows 10 Using EFS
• Third-party software to encrypt files and folders in Windows

The key is also protected with encryption, but it's not the same level of security you'd find with a Trusted Module Platform chip. Let’s take a look at how to encrypt files and folders in Windows 10, 8, or 7 step-by-step. Windows Home editions do not ship with EFS or BitLocker. You will have to upgrade or use a third-party app to encrypt your data. For other editors of Windows, the basic process is the same; it is just the look-and-feel of the interface that is a bit different. When using a password-protected file system, it is important to know how to encrypt a folder in Windows 10.

This can be achieved by using the EFS feature which encrypts data on NTFS drives on a per-user basis. If you have important personal or business content such as Intellectual Property on your Windows PC, you may wonder how to ensure that data is secure. If a laptop is lost or stolen, it is possible that thieves could access the contents of the hard drive. The solution is to encrypt your files and folders in Windows 10. Password protection means only authorized users can access the desired information.

How to enable device encryption on Windows 10 Home

Encryption means converting the plaintext data into some coded form, also known as ciphertext, so that only the recipient of the data can decode the information. Algorithms are used for the process of converting plaintext data into ciphertext. RestorePrivacy is a digital privacy advocacy group committed to helping people stay safe and secure online. You can support this project through donations, purchasing items through our links , and sharing this information with others. However, I believe VeraCrypt is superior to Bitlocker, as I recall years ago I had read an article about Bitlocker having a backdoor built into it for LEA.

And, if you want to encrypt Excel databases, you can do that too. Below we will walk you through some of the most popular methods for encrypting on your computer. Locate and select the folder you wish to protect and click “Open”. In the Image Format drop down, select “read/write”. In the Encryption menu select the Encryption protocol you would like to use.

Encrypting files in Windows using BitLocker

TPM chips are designed to sniff out unauthorized or tampering users quickly, in which case the chip will not give up the part of the decryption key it's holding. Adding password-protection to a folder is not available in older versions of Windows. Windows 10 Pro does offer the feature, but you need to use a third-party archiving or compression utility to add the password. You can download 7-Zip, an open-source zip compression utility, for free.

We have thousands of articles and guides to help you troubleshoot any issue. Our articles have been read over 150 million times since we launched in 2008. To use AxCrypt, you’ll need to first install the software and create a new account when you first launch it.

This Credit Card Lifehack Saves Me Cash Every Single Day

As an alternative, you could use dedicated file encryption software like AxCrypt, which offers a Secured Folders feature. This is a premium feature, but you can try the software with a 30-day free trial. I guess Cryptomator is a very quick solution if one wants to create a virtual drive without any size restrictions and ability to expand by adding new files. Cryptomator is free and open-source, and it has very decent options to integrate it with various cloud providers like NextCloud and ownCloud.

Although necessary, encryption processes and system requirements can sometimes impact other routine processes inside your PC. To protect valuable and sensitive company data from being accessed if a laptop is stolen or lost. On the security screen, tick the box next to Password and type in a password. You will need to enter it twice to confirm it is the right password. Unless the file has a plaintext header which indicates that it has been encrypted, there is no way to distinguish ciphertext from uniform random data.

Back Up Your EFS Encryption Key

You can decrypt the files using your own encryption password, although you’ll also need an AxCrypt account to use the software. Passwords are stored locally, however. One of the simplest methods to password protect a folder in Windows 10 is to use the built-in folder encryption system called the Encrypted File System .

Using EFS requires your user account to have a password, and unless that password is strong, it might be brute forced by someone with physical access to the computer. Your file encryption will only be as strong as your user password, so make sure it is robust. When we say we're “password protecting” a file, we generally mean we're encrypting the file so it can't be decrypted and understood without your encryption password. That's the most secure way to password protect files. A dedicated secure hardware (FPGA/ASIC) based offline encryption device is for transacting classified data over Public/Open networks.

So, if you have sensitive files and folders, you can use a BitLocker encrypted drive to password protect them. Doing so will safeguard essential files in case your device gets into the wrong hands. BitLocker's virtual hard disk feature lets us encrypt any folder on your system as a separate virtual drive.

Once you click, you will see the list of encrypted files. If the desired file doesn’t appear, click on the add button. That’s it, you have successfully encrypted the file from other user accounts and also saved a recovery key for safety. Click on the Browse… button to choose the exact location where the encryption key should be saved and set an appropriate name for the same. Finally, check the box for Encrypt contents to secure data option under the Compress or Encrypt attributes section. You simply need to log in from that user account to access the files and need not enter the encryption password again.

I'm pretty sure there's a whole section on bitlocker in the article. What do you need to know about encryption on your Windows 10 PC? Using a VPN will hide these details and protect your privacy. Encryption will also make it difficult, if not impossible, for hackers to access this data if it falls into the wrong hands. GnuPG is a complete and free implementation of the OpenPGP standard that allows you to encrypt and sign your data.

And if you mess up, there is a chance you will lose files or even access to the entire disk drive. Select OK. This creates the encrypted archive file, which appears in the same folder as the file or folder you encrypted. All this happens automatically and transparently.