How To Make A Zip File Password Protected On Mac

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You know who you are: a) your passwords are scribbled on a tattered and torn piece of paper right next to your computer; b) your spouse’s credit card number or social security number is on a post-it note next to the mouse; or c) you create a Christmas shopping list and save it on your desktop as “DO NOT READ.”

Follow these steps to create a password-protected archive file for any file folder of your choosing: Step 1: Download the open-source 7-Zip compression program from the provider’s website and install the software on your system. Now, for you to be able to make a password protect archives, here are the steps that you will be needing to follow. Go ahead and open the Terminal application on your Mac. And then choose Utilities Folder. After that, go ahead and enter the following command: zip -er archivename.zip filetoprotect.txt.

Save yourself the hassle of applying for a new social or ruining Christmas for everyone. You can create an encrypted, password protected folder on a mac without using any third-party software and it is done in just 5 easy steps – by creating an encrypted disk image.

1. Open Disk Utility by navigating to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utilities.

2. Choose File > New > Blank Disk Image or click the New Image icon.

3. In the New Blank Image window that appears, name the new secure folder or “image.” Next, choose your desired size from the pop-up menu that is sufficient to hold your super-secret data. Then, from the Encryption pop-up menu choose 128-bit AES Encryption (secure enough for all of us and faster than 256-bit). Finally, choose either read/write or Sparse Disk Image from the Image Format pop-up menu and click Create.

A read/write disk image takes up a set amount of space on the drive, while a sparse image is a type of disk image file that grows in size as the user adds data, taking up only as much disk space as stored in it.

How to create and password protect a zip file on macosPassword

4. At this point, you will be prompted for a password. Click one that is easy for you to remember, as a lost password means all the files on the image are lost too.

Remember to uncheck the ‘Remember Password in My Keychain’ option. Otherwise, anybody sitting down at your computer will have access to your image – which would defeat the purpose of this whole helpful article

Click OK and both the sparse image file and mounted image are created. This will look familiar to anyone who has put an external drive into their computer before.

How To Make A Zip File Password Protected On Mac Catalina

5. Double click the image to mount the “folder.” Drag the content that you want to protect into the mounted image.

How To Create And Password Protect A Zip File On Macos

When you’re done with it, drag the mounted image to the trash to eject it or right-click it and choose “Eject.” When you next need it, double-click on the image file and enter its password when prompted.

With these 5 simple steps you can create a password protected folder on your mac. While this is an effective means of keeping data from the prying eyes of thieves or children, as explained above, it is far from secure as anyone can simply delete the image. If you really want to secure and protect data for your personal computer or business, call FloridaPro Computing.

You may have sensitive files like documents, images, videos, voice notes, that you want to keep private from friends and family (if they ever happen to use your Mac). Thankfully, it is effortless to put a password on a folder to shield it from others. So, without further ado, let’s get to the steps and show you how to encrypt and password protect a folder on your Mac.

How Do I Password Protect a Folder on Mac?

  1. Open Disk Utility. For this, open Finder → Applications → Utilities → Disk Utility. Or, press Command + Spacebar to open Spotlight Search and type this app’s name.
  2. From the top menu bar, click on File → New Image → Image from Folder.
  3. Now, select the desired folder you wish to lock and click on Choose.
  4. Optional: For ‘Save As:’ continue with the same name, or you may also change it. Click on ‘Where:’ and choose the desired location to save the disk image. You can move it later as well.
  5. Important: For ‘Encryption:’ choose 128-bit AES encryption (recommended). The second option here (256-bit) is slower. Please enter the desired password, re-enter it to verify, and finally click on Choose.
  6. Important: Click on ‘Image Format:’ and choose read/write.
  7. Finally, click on Save.

You have successfully created a disk image (.dmg file) that is protected with a password. Now, let me show you how to use it.

How to View and Re-Lock the Password Protected Folder on Mac

  1. Locate the .dmg disk file.
  2. Double click to open it.
  3. You will be asked to enter the password. Type the same password you used while creating the disk image and click OK. (Note: Do not check the box for ‘Remember password in my keychain.’ If you do, it may defeat the purpose. The saved password will fill in automatically if someone has your Mac or knows its password.)
  4. After you enter the password, you will see a disk image on the desktop. It looks similar to an external pen drive. Double click to open it, and you will see the contents in it.
  5. Important: Now, delete the original folder so that the content inside it is removed from your Mac and is only available inside this password-protected disk image.
  6. To re-lock the protected folder, right-click and choose Eject “Folder Name.”
  7. To reopen it, follow the same process from step 1.

Notes:

  • This disk image will have almost the same capacity as the size of the original folder. You can freely delete existing content inside it and replace it with other content.
  • Do not delete this .dmg file. If you do, everything will be lost.
  • If you want to permanently remove the locked folder (and its contents), open Disk Utility, → choose the disk image from the left sidebar, → right-click on it, and choose ‘Delete APFS Volume.’

Signing Off

This is how you can quickly, safely, and freely lock a folder with a password on Mac. I hope this guide was helpful, and you learned something new.

You can also use third-party apps like Encrypto to encrypt and put a password on individual files and folders.

Want to know more? See how to password protect PDFs and lock notes on Mac.

Finally, here’s an additional tip for you. If you do not want the folder to show up in Spotlight Search, add .noindex after the folder name.

How To Make A Zip File Password Protected On Mac Windows 10

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I have been an Apple user for over seven years now. At iGeeksBlog, I love creating how-tos and troubleshooting guides that help people do more with their iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods, and Apple Watch. In my free time, I like to watch stand up comedy videos, tech documentaries, news debates, and political speeches.

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