How to Password-Protect Files on Mac – Guide
Protecting your confidential files and documents on your Mac is easy with passwords. Here’s how to add a password to a folder, as well as some tips for safeguarding digital documents and saving storage space.
Protect individual documents with pages
Apple’s Pages app, which comes pre-installed on all Macs, can be used to password protect individual files without the need for additional software like Microsoft Word.
In Pages, users can easily protect their documents by setting a password. To do so, open or create a document and click File on the menu bar. From there, select Set password … to secure the file.
Create a password for this document, enter it in the Verify field and consider adding a hint in case you forget. Once done, there’s no way back without the password.
Click ‘Set password’ to secure your document. After saving and locating it in the Finder, you’ll see a lock icon indicating it’s now password protected. When you try to open it later, you’ll need to enter the password.
Create a password protected disk image
Creating a single, password-protected disk image is the most efficient way to secure multiple files, file types and folders. This virtual hard drive can be stored on its own hard drive without the need for external devices.
Conclusion: When creating a disk image, ensure you have enough free space to accommodate the files you want to store. For documents, 100 MB should suffice; for images or videos, 1-2 GB may be necessary.
Using the Disk Utility app on your Mac, you can create a password-protected image. Open the app in the Applications folder or search for it using Spotlight. Then, click File in the menu bar, select New Image and choose Blank Image to create a blank image from scratch.
Create a disk image with a custom size and format. Enter the size in the appropriate field, or try 100 MB as a starting point. Select the standard extended OS X (daily) format.
Choose the 128-bit AES encryption option for your data security. Create a secure yet memorable password when prompted.
Leave the partitioning and image format unchanged: “Single partition - GUID partition map” for partitions and “read/write disk image” for image format.
To protect your files and folders, create a disk image in Finder, move the items you want to secure into it, then eject the image when finished.
Final note
If you’re looking for a way to protect your files on Mac, this guide has you covered. Got questions? Reach out to us. And don’t forget to share the love and spread the word!
