# Password protecting a USB flash drive **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 6, 2006, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567 "2006-06-06T02:22:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/1 "2006-06-06T02:22:00Z")
I bought this USB flash drive last week: [http://pcclub.com/product\_details.cfm?itemno=A4302099](http://pcclub.com/product_details.cfm?itemno=A4302099) it’s advertised to “Support security function (password protection)”. Neither the documentation it came with nor the manufacturer’s web site describe how to actually do this. Is there some standard way of adding password protection to a USB flash drive that this is referring to? ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/2 "2006-06-06T02:25:29Z")
You can give this a try… Right click the drive letter, and see what your options are. It could be there. If not, someone will come along with an answer. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/3 "2006-06-06T09:21:47Z")
There is no standard way of adding a password to a USB drive. Most of the drives that advertise this come with special security software that handles the password and encryption. (Disclaimer: I don’t use any of the following so I don’t know how good or how safe they are.) Did you try the Kingmax Superstick Drivers from [this page](http://www.kingmaxdigi.com/support/download.htm)? That MIGHT come with the software you need, but I don’t know for sure. If not, there are many third-party programs that accomplish the same thing. [Winzip](http://www.winzip.com/), for one, lets you add a password to any archive. There are other programs out there that can protect your files with varying types and strengths of encryption. You can look for them at [download.com](http://download.com) and [sourceforge.net](http://sourceforge.net) if you’re interested. ---
**Author:** ![Szlater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Szlater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Szlater)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/4 "2006-06-06T11:18:24Z")
[Cryptainer LE](http://www.cypherix.com/cryptainerle/) is supposed to be [pretty good](http://downloadsnew.pcpro.co.uk/Utilities/SecurityApplications/cryptainerle.html) (and free). There’s a [mobile version](http://www.cypherix.com/cryptainerle/mobile.htm) specifically for USB flash drives. I’ve not used it myself, but I generally trust the reviews at [PCPro](http://www.pcpro.co.uk/), it’s a pretty reputable magazine. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/5 "2006-06-06T12:02:08Z")
I like TrueCrypt, personally. It works great for flash drives, because it doesn’t need installation - you can keep the executable on the drive right next to the encrypted file. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/6 "2006-06-06T12:25:19Z")
> [@ParentalAdvisory](#): > > You can give this a try… Right click the drive letter, and see what your options are. It could be there. If not, someone will come along with an answer. Yeah, I tried that, but under “security and sharing” there seemed to be only sharing options. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/7 "2006-06-06T12:30:12Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > There is no standard way of adding a password to a USB drive. Most of the drives that advertise this come with special security software that handles the password and encryption. That’s what I thought, but nothing on this one. > [@Reply](#): > > Did you try the Kingmax Superstick Drivers from [this page](http://www.kingmaxdigi.com/support/download.htm)? That MIGHT come with the software you need, but I don’t know for sure. Unfortunately that’s just a driver for Win98. > [@Reply](#): > > If not, there are many third-party programs that accomplish the same thing. [Winzip](http://www.winzip.com/), for one, lets you add a password to any archive. There are other programs out there that can protect your files with varying types and strengths of encryption. You can look for them at [download.com](http://download.com) and [sourceforge.net](http://sourceforge.net) if you’re interested. Thanks everybody for the 3rd party suggestions, I might give one of those a try if I decide I really need security. I was really hoping there was something built-in, perhaps in the USB spec, that wouldn’t require any additional software. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/8 "2006-06-06T14:49:59Z")
The User’s Manual on [this page](http://www.kingmaxdigi.com/support/download.htm) says that you need to use the U-StorageTools.exe program to do the security stuff. If there wasn’t a CD with your drive, I imagine that the software can be found in one of the download packages (probably in with a driver) on the site. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/9 "2006-06-06T22:57:50Z")
> [@Sage Rat](#): > > The User’s Manual on [this page](http://www.kingmaxdigi.com/support/download.htm) says that you need to use the U-StorageTools.exe program to do the security stuff. If there wasn’t a CD with your drive, I imagine that the software can be found in one of the download packages (probably in with a driver) on the site. Do you mean the USB2.0 User’s Guide? That’s a different product, I have the Super Stick. I suppose the same software might work, though, could be worth a shot. ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/10 "2006-06-06T23:06:58Z")
Another major recommendation for [Truecrypt](http://www.truecrypt.org). ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2006, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/password-protecting-a-usb-flash-drive/359567/11 "2006-06-06T23:19:50Z")
Take a look at the [MySecurity](http://www.kingmaxdigi.com/support/MYSECURITY.exe) utility on the manufacturer site. I have one of the Swissbit memory knives and it uses their SecureLOCK tool to manage security. Though that tool will likely not work on your device (it probably requires hardware support), [the page](http://www.swissbit.com/haupt.asp?nv=2290&spr=2) gives a pretty good idea of how a typical USB security tool works. The idea is that you copy the little EXE file onto the memory device and then run it. It allows you to partition the device into a private and public areas. When you plug the device in, you see two drives on the machine. One has your public partition; the other only has the EXE file. You then click on the EXE to pop up a password dialog. When you log in, the device automatically remounts the private drive as unlocked. NB: My device requires administator privs to allow you access to the private partition. Must be something in remounting the drive that mortal users cannot do in Windows.