Right-Click the Folder or File you wish to encrypt and click Properties.Ĭheck the box Encrypt contents to secure data and click OK.
If you’re unsure what version of Windows you’re running, just launch Winver.exe which is built into all versions of Windows. Note: Similar to BitLocker, Windows EFS is only supported with the Pro and Enterprise versions of Windows 8.1, Windows 8 and Windows 7. Although the screenshots and steps below are taken from Windows 8, the steps are the same for Windows 7 and Windows XP. Very handy if you want to keep certain files or folders private – and because EFS is built-in seamlessly to Windows, you won’t even notice it most of the time.
Although other users on the same computer might be able to see your files, they will be unable to open them – including Administrators. Once a file is encrypted using EFS, it can only be accessed by the Windows login that encrypted the file. Before I review those steps however, here’s a brief summary on what EFS is and why you should enable it on sensitive or private files.ĮFS is a built-in Encryption service which is built into Windows since the days of Windows XP.
