[Mac] : Create a Secured and Locked Folder in Mac OS X Lion

Create a Secured and Locked Folder in Mac OS X Lion

Creating a locked, password protected folder in Mac OS X is fairly simple. You don’t need to download any third party programs or software, and everything that you need is built into Mac OS X. Nearly any type of file can be password protected, or placed into a folder which can be password protected.

Want to learn how to create a secured folder in Windows?

To get started, find the folder on your computer that you would like to protect. For our example, the folder will be titled “Online-Tech-Tips Secret Stash,” located on the desktop. Of course, also make sure that the specific files that you want to protect are inside the folder. We will use a simple image file as an example for this tutorial.

Next, open up Disk Utility using the path Finder > Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.

With the Disk Utility window open and active, select File > New > Disk Image From Folder from the top Mac OS X navigation bar. This will launch the Select Folder to Image window. Navigate to the folder that you want to password protect and click the Image button.

You will now be presented with a couple of additional options for saving the Image. Enter a file name for your locked folder, and also be sure to set image format to read/write and encryption to 128-bit AES encryption (recommended). Click the Save button to save the image file.

You will now need to enter a password and verify the password in order to create the locked folder. It is recommended that you use a password of mixed characters for maximum password strength, and that youuncheck the option Remember password in my keychain. Once you have finished creating your password, click the OK button.

Once you have completed this step, the new .dmg image file will be saved to your chosen location. Please note, that the original folder will still remain on your computer. The .dmg Image is simply an encrypted, password protected copy of the file. So, you may want to move the original folder to the trash bin and delete it.

Your locked folder is located within the .dmg Image file. So, to access it, start by double clicking the .dmg file.

Upon doing so, you will immediately be prompted for the password. Without the password, the .dmg file and contained folder and contents cannot be accessed.

Enter your password and click the OK button. Again, you want to make sure that Remember password in my keychain is not checked. Upon gaining access, Finder will mount the .dmg within Mac OS X. Double clicking it grants you access to your encrypted folder.

That’s all there is to it. By setting the permissions as read/write when creating the password protected archive, you are able to not only access your encrypted files, but also edit them as well. This is the simplest way that I have found to password protect files and folders on a Mac. Any other recommendations? Leave a comment!