If the above steps and saving up a decryption key are too complicated or you are running on a Windows Home machine that is not activated or looking for some advanced-level features, move to the following method. Note that this free Windows method to lock a ZIP file isn’t designed for sending the file but rather to safeguard it in a single location. You have locked the ZIP file and folders on your Windows machine. Note: If this key is lost, there’s no way to decrypt the file or folder, and you can never see the content of the file or folder. Step 7: Now, click and save the decryption key from the pop notification. Step 6: In the Encryption Warning window, choose ‘Encrypt the file and its parent folder (recommended)’ or ‘Encrypt the file only,’ and click OK.

Step 5: Under the Advanced Attributes window, check ‘Encrypt contents to secure data’ and click OK. Step 4: In the Properties window, go to Advanced. Step 3: Now, right-click on the ZIP folder you want to protect, and from the context menu, select Properties. This will create a ZIP folder at the exact location of your original folder.

Step 2: From the menu, choose Send to and click on the ‘Compressed (zipped) folder’ option. Step 1: Go to the file or folder you want to ZIP secure, right-click on it, and select ‘Show more options’ in the context menu. Windows natively provides an encryption feature that helps protect your files and folders, including ZIP files, on your Windows PC. However, you must have Windows Pro, Education, or the Enterprise version for the method to work. Method 1: How to Lock a ZIP File using Windows Encrypting File System (EFS)

If not, anyone can easily unzip files on Windows. Password-protecting a ZIP file is a great way to keep your files secure and hidden from others who may have access to your computer. In this article, we will guide you on how to password-protect a ZIP file on Windows 11 and 10. Have you ever wanted to keep your sensitive files and documents safe and secure? One way to achieve this is by password-protecting your ZIP files before saving or sharing them with someone.

Windows zip with password