Other accounts, even those with administrative privileges on the machine, will be unable to access it. If you encrypt a file with EFS, only you can access the file through your Windows account. EFS is available in Windows 10 Pro, Windows 10 Enterprise, Windows 8/8.1 Pro, Windows 8/8.1 Enterprise, Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Ultimate, and Windows 7 Enterprise. Windows offers a built-in encryption tool called Encrypted File Service (EFS).

Second, if someone does gain access to your computer, that person could easily turn on the option for Hidden Files, which acts like a red flag for any potentially secret or sensitive files.Ī more secure option is to encrypt any folder or files you wish to safeguard. First, if you want to work with those files, you have to either unhide them or re-enable the option to view Hidden Files, which defeats the whole purpose of hiding them. Hiding folders and files is a simple process but one with a couple of obvious drawbacks. The files should then vanish ( Figure B).

Click on the View tab and uncheck the box for Hidden Files. If you’re still able to see the folder or files, that likely means the option to view hidden files is turned on. From the Properties dialog box, click the checkbox for Hidden. Right-click on your selection and select Properties from the menu. Select a folder or file (or files) that you want to hide. SEE: Windows 10 security: A guide for business leaders (TechRepublic Premium)įirst, open File Explorer on your Windows computer. You can then back up the encryption key and add a password to further protect the file. Encrypting adds a certificate to the file so that only you can access it.

Or, more effectively, you can encrypt the file.

The downside here is that someone can easily see the file by simply choosing to view all hidden files.

You can simply hide a folder or file in File Explorer so that it’s not visible.

Perhaps there are specific folders and files on your PC for which you want an extra layer of security. You can–and should–protect your Windows computer with a strong and secure login password or other means of authentication. For more info, visit our Terms of Use page. This may influence how and where their products appear on our site, but vendors cannot pay to influence the content of our reviews. We may be compensated by vendors who appear on this page through methods such as affiliate links or sponsored partnerships. Learn how to hide or encrypt specific files in Windows in order to better protect them. How to protect specific folders and files in Windows

How to password lock a folder windows 7