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19 January 2018  Jennifer Thatcher  Technology Manager of Test Dept.
 

Summary
How to limit the unauthorized to Excel files which may save confidential data? Now you can make use of the 2 free and secure methods below to password protect your Excel files!



Data security is an endless topic nowadays. Being one of the most useful software, Microsoft Office Excel has been widely used in storing, organizing and manipulating data.
Assuming you save some sensitive data inside the Excel worksheet and you do not want others to get access to it. Best way to protect the Excel worksheet is to put password on it, which can prevent others from tampering with your data.
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But how to password protect an Excel file in a secure and simple way?

Following methods could do you a favor if you want to password protect Excel file:

>> Method 1: Built-in Encryption Function in Excel
>> Method 2: Password Protect Excel File with Professional Encryption Software

Method 1: Make Use of Built-in Encryption Function in Excel

Here we take Microsoft Office Excel 2007 as an example.

Step 1: Please select “Save as” after clicking “Office” button. 

select save as in Excel

Step 2: Click “Tools” in the pop up “Save as” window and choose “General Options”. 

choose general in Excel save settings

Step 3: Enter the password in the “Password to open” and “Password to modify” field. After setting, please click “OK”.

The passwords in these two field could be different from each other.
set password for excel file

Step 4: When you open or edit the protected Excel file, you will be required to enter the related password.

password required after lock
Although this method seems to be safe, it is easy to be cracked. And we could find crack methods which aims at different Excel version on the Internet.
method to crack password protected excel file

Method 2: How to Password Protect an Excel File with Professional Encryption Software

Professional encryption software – Renee File Protector can help you put password to Excel file with 2 different encryption methods. Adapting with AES 256 Encryption, Renee File Protector also protect data via disk drivers in Windows instead of just hiding folder with a simple way.

Professional Renee File Protector

how to lock a folder on Windows 10

Protection for External Memory Devices: Password protect files/folders in external memory devices like SD card, external disk, memory card and USB.

Protection for Shared Folder: Lock shared folder with password to ensure the right people get access to the files inside.

Hide Data: Hide files/folders/partitions in local disk. Even “Show hidden files/folders” was enabled in Windows, the protected data will not be shown.

Lock Data in Local Disk: Prevent the password protected files/folders/paritions from unauthorized access in steps.

Monitor: Any activity of the targets which has been added to the monitor list will be recorded. You can check the log at anytime.

Get Free Version
152419 people has downloaded and lock their folders!

Preparation before processing the protection:

Step 1: Download and Install free version of Renee File Protector now!
press to the download button
Step 2: Set master password for Renee File Protector!
set master password for renee file protector
Renee File Protector provides two different password protection methods for your Excel files:

Password Protect Excel File with “Lock” Function

Excel file protected with this method will not be password-protected after the uninstall of Renee File Protector.

Of course, only you enter the correct password, the uninstall of Renee File Protector will be processed.

Step 1: Go to “Lock File” in “Hard Disk”. Click “Lock File” button to select target Excel file. 

lock Excel file with lock function in Renee File Protector

Step 2: After assurance, the Excel file will be protected with the master password of Renee File Protector automatically. 

lock excel file with lock function

Step 3: Anyone who want to access the protected file need to provide the master password of Renee File Protector.

password required when opening the excel file

Password Protected Excel File with “Encryption” Function

Step 1: Launch Renee File Protector and go to “Encrypt File” in “Common”.

Select Encrypt File in Common function

Step 2: Select target Excel file to encrypt.

① Click “Add Files” on the right side and then select the target file.
② Then please select the target file(s) in the list.
③ Select the method you want to encrypt with: Encrypt to GFL and EXE are provided.
What is the differences between GFL and EXE?

GFL: If you save the encrypted files in GFL format, you must to install Renee File Protector to decrypt the GFL file.

EXE: You can decrypt the EXE file in any other computer without installing Renee File Protector.

password protect excel file with encryption function

Step 3: Set password for the password encrypted Excel file in the pop-up window.

set password for the encrypted Excel file
After comparing with the 2 different Excel protection methods, we recommend you to encrypt the Excel file with the professional encryption software – Renee File Protector which can provides better protection to your Excel files. Download free Renee File Protector now!
press to the download button