# Hide, encrypt and lock folders? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 20, 2007, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785 "2007-06-20T23:27:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2007, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/1 "2007-06-20T23:27:21Z")
Can anyone recommend something better than FolderLock for hiding, encrypting and locking folders in Windows XP? FolderLock, as it turns out, can be defeated. But my problems with it are different. It causes the blue screen of death at start-up every other time, plus lately when I click on a Windows Media Player file FolderLock launches instead of WMP, even though the WMP files are not in a locked folder and have nothing whatever to do with FolderLock. They don’t respond to e-mailed requests for help, so I want to dump the software and replace it with something better, if available. Seems like Windows itself should offer this option but I don’t know what it is/would be. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/2 "2007-06-21T00:06:08Z")
Right click the file and choose properties. Choose advanced. Click encrypt contents. it’s encrypted. You’ll have to read the help to see what to do encase the computer crashes so you can still access the data. You can check hidden in properties also. ---
**Author:** ![brazil84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8491ac/32.png) [@brazil84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brazil84)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/3 "2007-06-21T00:19:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Seems like Windows itself should offer this option but I don’t know what it is/would be Windows does offer it, but I understand you have to upgrade beyond the standard Windows that comes with a typical PC. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Librarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_librarian/32/402_2.png) [@The\_Librarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Librarian)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/4 "2007-06-21T00:23:21Z")
The only way to prevent unauthorised acces to critical files is preventing physical acces to the harddisk they are on. unless you use more sophisticated techniques to completely encrypt your disk, windows will leave all kinds of temporary files that can be read by a skilled and determined person. If however the goal is to hide your porn from your wife (files that are of no interest to a hacker/corporate spy/journalist and not critical to your country’s security) you can prevent prying eyes from opening your files with simple windows settings. It all depends on how paranoid you are. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/5 "2007-06-21T01:48:47Z")
I made a test folder and made it Hidden in Properties, but all that does it dim it’s look since I have Show Hidden Folders checked. Obviously, if all you have to do is check Show Hidden Folders, the folder isn’t really hidden, right? Then I went to Advanced in the Properties box and checked Encrypt contents to secure data. That did absolutely nothing as all I had to do was click on the folder to open it and display it’s contents. So if this is Windows way of helping me hide, encrypt and protect folders from prying eyes, Windows provides no way to hide, encrypt and protect folders from prying eyes. What I’m looking for is software that will password protect folders. Something like FolderLock that works and doesn’t screw up the rest of the OS as I described in the OP. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Librarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_librarian/32/402_2.png) [@The\_Librarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Librarian)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/6 "2007-06-21T02:13:39Z")
You need to activate multiple accounts in windows. then right-click your the folder you want to hide, select properties–\>sharing–\>check the first box. then you can only open that folder with your account or with an account with administrator rights. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/7 "2007-06-21T02:21:35Z")
You asked what XP had built in. You got it. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/8 "2007-06-21T02:25:41Z")
[QUOTE=Harmonious Discord] You asked what XP had built in. You got it. [/QUOTE] No, I asked if anybody knew of any third party software that would do it. So far, nuttin’. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/9 "2007-06-21T02:27:39Z")
[QUOTE=The Librarian] You need to activate multiple accounts in windows. then right-click your the folder you want to hide, select properties–\>sharing–\>check the first box. then you can only open that folder with your account or with an account with administrator rights. [/QUOTE] Okay, so this would require me to make my whole “account” on the computer password protected. Is that correct? ---
**Author:** ![Stealth\_Potato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Stealth\_Potato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stealth_Potato)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/10 "2007-06-21T02:41:29Z")
[QUOTE=randwill] Okay, so this would require me to make my whole “account” on the computer password protected. Is that correct? [/QUOTE] Yep. If you have Windows XP Home Edition, you can then make all the folders in your user directory (C:\Documents and Settings\Your Username) “private,” which means no other user can access them. If you have Windows XP Professional, you can specify fine-grained permissions for any folder in the system, and set up users and groups with varying levels of access. A lot more stuff to manage, but it gives you much greater control. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/11 "2007-06-21T02:57:52Z")
Seems like Windows itself should offer this option but I don’t know what it is/would be. ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/12 "2007-06-21T12:07:56Z")
[TrueCrypt](http://www.truecrypt.org/) will create encrypted containers and is free. The data is encrypted with your passphrase, and you can move the encrypted file to another machine (with TrueCrypt installed) to open it up. The built-in encryption in XP is linked to your logon account, and is designed to protect data **when you are not logged on.** This means that without you logging in, your data is unavailable. Unfortunately, it is not brilliantly reliable, and people have lost data using it. You can lose access to the encrypted data when changing your password, too. It’s basically a crock. Si ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2007, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hide-encrypt-and-lock-folders/408785/13 "2007-06-21T20:02:00Z")
I use an app called [DESlock](http://www.deslock.com/). It will encrypt files and folders, and optionally hide them. It’s free for personal use or you can purchase a license for business or if you need more robust encryption.