7 Ways to Hide or Password Protect a Folder in Windows 11

1. Hide Files, Photos, Videos or Folders in Windows 11
2. Password Protect a folder in Windows 11
3. Set a secret password for a specific folder with and without Software
4. You can also use CMD to Protect your Windows 11 Folders with Password
5. Methods given here also works on Windows 10 to Hide or Protect Folders.

Privacy has been a concern for users in recent times, needless to say keeping your data private is of utmost importance. Although Windows is trying to make a secure environment for users and the upcoming Windows 11 promises to come with upgraded security features, how do you protect your precious data from the people who can access your drive? 

As most of our lives are getting more social and open, our devices are well within the reach of a lot of people and the risk of someone with ill intentions getting access to your PC is higher.  If you secure your folder with a password the chances of keeping your data and privacy safe without hindering your social life would be the best choice. This added layer of security would not allow anyone to access or delete your files without the knowledge of the password you have set hence your data will remain safe and sound.

Security experts recommend securing all important data with a folder/file lock. This can be achieved in several ways. Some of the best methods are mentioned below.

Password protect or Hide a folder in Windows 11 without Software

If you are one of those who want to secure their data without downloading any third-party app this is an easy way to protect your files. This method is only advised for personnel use and using it to protect confidential content by agencies and enterprises is discouraged. 

Simple method To hide files and Folders in Windows 11:

You can simply use your Windows File Explorer to Hide your Files and Folders.

1. Go to the Folder or File you wan to Hide.
2. Right click the File or Folder and Click Properties
   
   
   This will make the File or Folder Hidden and when you Enable to not show hidden items the Folder you’ve made hidden will disapear.
   
3. To Hide the “Hidden Items”, Click View at the top and choose Show and then Uncheck Hiidden Items.
   
   

Hide a Folder in Windows 11 using CMD:

Here is an awesome computer trick to hide or unhide your secret files or folders using cmd (command prompt) in windows 11, 10, 8, 7, XP too. You can keep your files safer and secure, where your friends or family members can’t access your personal files. The interesting thing about this method of file protection is, files can’t be found through a search or even by using ” Show Hidden folders.”

If you want to hide a folder see the steps :

Here I’m gonna hide a folder named Epost100 in the D drive.

1. Open CMD (command prompt) by pressing (Winkey + R) and type cmd.
2. Type “attrib +s +h D:/waftr ” (Give you folder location instead “D:/waftr”)
   
3. Check the folder    

To Unhide a folder gives “ attrib -s -h D: /waftr “

Hide a Folder in Windows 11 on a Shared PC:

When you are using a shared PC and you don’t want others to access some of your Folder, you can follow these steps to encrypt certain folders. This is a way of locking the folders and the other person using the PC with a different account can’t access this folder.

1. Navigate to the folder you want to secure and right-click on it.
2. Go to properties and click on advanced in the dialogue box. 
3. Here you can change the settings of your file, click the checkbox marked “ Encrypt content to Secure data” and click OK. You can either encrypt a single file or put all the files you want to encrypt in an assigned folder and encrypt the folder instead.  
   
   
   
4. Click on apply changes followed by OK, now your file/folder cannot be opened by any other account on the same PC or by someone who tries to open it without decrypting
5. To reverse the changes and open the file go to properties by right-clicking on the folder>Go to Advanced and uncheck the “Encrypt the content to secure data” option.

Password protect a folder in Windows 11 using CMD

You can set a password to a folder in Windows 11 using the Command Prompt on your PC. You can find the detailed steps here – Password protect a folder by Laptopmag

This is one big process, but this will be 100% Password protected and secure, without installing or using any software.

Hide a Drive in Windows 11 using CMD

We make partitions in our PC to segment the drive to store various categories of documents for easy access, and also we will be having the drive to store some secret files. But how to protect the Drive? The best way is to Hide the Drive using CMD (Command prompt).

In Windows 11 and 10 you can Hide the Drives without using any software. 5 Steps in CMD can be used to hide the drive, follow the steps given below.

1. Open the command prompt of your system
2. Type “Diskpart” and then press enter
3. To see all the disk details type “list volume” in the command prompt
4. Decide the volume to hide and then give the command as “Select volume E” in the command prompt and then press enter.For example, if you want to lock up disk partition D then type as “Select volume D”.
5. Type “Remove letter E” in the cmd to hide the selected partition.

To get the drive out of the Password just follow the below steps:

1. open the command prompt of your system
2. Type the “Diskpart” and then enter
3. Type “list volume” to view the details of all the disk in your system
4. select the hidden disk volume just by using the command “Select volume E” where E is the label of the disk
5. To reveal the hidden partition use the command “Assign letter E” where E is the label of the hidden disk.

That’s all. Now you can see the disk partition in your system.

Password protect a folder in Windows 11 with Software

Now that we have seen different ways to hide files and folders in Windows 11 without using any software, below are the methods you can use to make files and folders hidden using trusted software. Some from Microsoft store for free.

Using WinRAR to Password Protect Windows 11

1. Open the file you want to protect in WinRAR.
2. Click on tools from the top menu bar and navigate to Convert Archives. (You can also use the Alt+Q shortcut).
   
   
   
3. Tick the RAR checkbox in the archive type option and click on compression followed by OK.
4. Click on the set password option and set the password of your choice.
   
   
5. Re-enter your password and press and press OK
6. A Dialogue box stating “Are you sure you want to encrypt converted archives?” will appear click yes and allow WinRAR to compress the file.
7. Now your content is password protected and can be accessed with the right password.
   
   

Securing your folder in Windows 11 using Folder Lock 

Folder lock is an excellent locking software available for download online. The software is integrated with Microsoft Windows Explorer so you can secure your folders and files just by right-clicking on them. The software also provides you encrypted wallets to save your personal information and important essentials such as bank details. 

1. Download, Install and Run Folder Lock (from File Hippo) .
2. Set a master password and make sure to note it down in a secure manner as there is no method of resetting the password once you forget it. Hence you will risk losing access to your folder/file.
   
   
3. Once you have set the master password the initial window says Lock Files. Using this feature you can hide files, folders, or an entire drive. Just drag and drop the item you wish to secure. These files remain accessible only through the app and cannot be seen on the PC unless you unlock them. 
4. You would have a second option called Encrypted Files in this module you can create your own Encrypted Locker with a new password. Highly valuable files can be added to this secure vault. This is a great method to protect your files against hackers and other mischievous users.
5. Folder Lock comes with a Shred Files function so you can securely delete the original file in the PC after adding it to the Encrypted Vault. Once shredded even forensic data recovery software can not recover these files. 
6. You can store all your important virtual belongings like Licences, ID cards, Bank Account details, Health reports, and much more in Folder Lock wallet.

Securing your folder in Windows 11 using Folder & File Lock

A secret Folder is a free software that can be downloaded from Microsoft Store. You can use this app to hide or password protects your files and folders. Any file/folder secured using this app cannot be deleted or uninstalled without the password you have assigned. Securing the files using this app is very easy. All you need to do is add the file or folder inside the app and set the password you wish to secure in the Secret Folder.

Download Folder & File Lock

Using Gilisoft File Lock Pro to Hide Files and Folders

Gilisoft Pro is a military-grade encryption program you can download online. This program can not only secure files and folders but you can secure hard disks, memory chips, USB flash drives, and Network drives too. This app has a very simple interface and all you need to do is add files into the Gilisoft module to secure it.

Gillisoft File Lock Pro

Securing your folder in Windows 11 IObit

IObit is a very customizable software through which you can secure your files/folders. It allows you to password protect files, grants permission to specific users to view or edit the protected files, and prevents the file/folder from getting deleted by accident. This Application also serves as a barrier from viruses, spyware, and ransomware and keeps your data secure 

Bonus: Calculator Vault (Hide Photos & Videos)

If you don’t want others to know that you are using Folder lock software then this Calculator vault is the best option for you. Just download and install this App from the Microsoft store – Download Calculator Vault app.

Set a master password on the calculator and hide all the photos, videos, and folders inside this app.

Your friends and family will only find this as a calculator software but only you know about the hidden feature. This app also has a built-in web browser for secure browsing.

Ready to Hide a Folder in Windows 11?

You are all set to secure all your important data, You can always reach out to Microsoft Customer service which is available 24/7 with your queries.

Keep checking us out for more informative articles, “One single vulnerability is all an attacker needs.”