Password protecting your folders provides great protection to your confidential information. This reduces the chances of data theft, especially if you share a Windows PC with multiple users.
Best of all, you can choose from a variety of tools to keep your folders completely password-protected for free. There’s even a built-in Windows password protection tool.
With that said, there are some things you need to know before setting it up. Before we dive into the details, let us answer the first and most obvious question: why should you set up password protection for your folders? In short, there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this, as there could be a lot of reasons to do it.
Most users primarily set up password protection to protect sensitive information in folders in Windows 10. It can include anything from passwords and important financial data to private photos that you do not want anyone to see without your consent.
Password protecting folders is also a common practice in companies. Although they rarely have embarrassing photos, they still have many sensitive documents and files that they do not want their competitors to see.
Another reason you want to set up password protection for your folders is to ensure secure and private data transfers. This is especially useful in the work environment when you want to share files only with selected colleagues who have the password.
This raises another important question: how can you lock a folder and password protect it? Before you think about passwords and select the folders you want to keep password-protected, you need to choose a program that you will trust to do so with.
When it comes to ways to password protect Windows folders, there is no shortage of options. Of course, they do not all have the same features, so it is best to pick at least a couple as this will help you decide which one is best for you. A quick Google search will reveal a long list of options.
If you’ve ever wondered how to protect a folder in Windows 10, know that the answer is simple. In short, you have two suitable options. You can encrypt the folder or protect it with a password.
These two things may seem similar if you are not a tech fanatic, but there is a significant difference between them that you should be aware of. Here’s a quick look at the difference between password encryption and password protection:
Password encryption: Password encryption involves extracting all data and storing it in encrypted text, making it impossible for anyone to read it. To access the files, you must have a verification key.
Password protection: This form of data protection is equivalent to physically locking up your valuables. Only those with the correct password can access the files. That is why password protection is called a form of knowledge-based authentication.