You can do it without using compression using one of the web's many free utilities. I've used Steganos Security Suite before and it supports file hiding/encryption.

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lol. .i don't know if anyone has mentioned it.. but you could try an encript your files. This is a lot safer to do because there are programs that allows you to decript the password in zip file. It might take a while for them to get the password but it is definitlly possible.

On the other hand, encripting the file is much harder to try to descript without the right security certificate. Even if a hacker get into your computer and steal the file, it would be harder for them to open the file.

Note: before you try to encript all your files, make sure have backed up all your security certificate. Without it, you won't be able to access the file yourself.

To encript a file, right click on the file and select properites. Then under attributes, click "advanced" and select encrypt contents to secure file.

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Yep, I downloaded the same exact thing. Its a really good program until 2 weeks or so when the trial time runs out. I used it to keep my noisy family out of my private files except it just stopped working so I had to find a new software. I couldn't find anything better so now I just create archives by using WinRAR and put a password on the archive so when you try to unRAR it, it asks for a password. This is an alright tecnique until your file size reaches above a gigabyte because it will take about 2 minutes to unRAR the entire archive unless you only want to unRAR one file at a time.

 

 

 

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I cant findmy files..
How To Lock A Folder And Keep It Private

I've downloaded programs which can hide and lock your folders/files.
I installed them at that same day, and then lock some of my files and folders.

I've deleted some of the programs, and then when I looked at my files
I cant seem to find them. I already uninstall and deleted all the remaining programs but still I cant find my files.

When I checked my main folder (I mean where my locked/hidden folders were) the size of it is still the same but when I opened it the folders werent showing.

I hope you understand what I said. ..Its kinda confusing I know..Please help me. Email me. I need to find my files.

-reply by lehteb

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how to lock the folder/file??
How To Lock A Folder And Keep It Private

Yes you can lock your folder or file using command prompt.



-reply by ritesh

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Hi,


If you are using a shared computer and do not want to allow other users to access your files, and you have Windows XP Professional or Windows NT 4.0 installed on your computer then the following procedure may help you: (The procedure for Windows XP 2000 Server or Windows XP Server 2003 is different.)

Requirements: (You have to log on as an administrator or as a member of the administrator group to perform the following operations.)

1. You must have NTFS file system on the target hard drive which your folder(s) are stored in. If you are not sure which file system you have on that hard drive then right click the drive from My Computer and then click Properties from the menu (see Figure. 1) and proceed. If not you can easily convert your desired FAT or FAT32 drive to NTFS using the "convert" command from the command prompt. (More help on this command is included in your Windows OS Help and Support Center.)
   
   
   
   Figure. 1
   
2. Right-click the folder you want to set as private and then click Properties from the menu.
3. Click the Advanced button and then check the box which says: "Encrypt contents to secure data" (see Figure. 2) and then press OK. Press OK again.
   
   
   
   Figure. 2
   
4. If you have followed up the procedure correctly the target folder will show up in green and you are done. Now your folder will not be accessible for other accounts on the same computer such as guest accounts or other administrator accounts. Nobody except you will be able to decrypt, copy, modify, open, or execute them.

At the end I want to share a common problem with you that I faced it once and I lost all my own encrypted short stories, articles, and poems.

Do not forget to decrypt your files or save a backup to a FAT or FAT32 hard drive, or write them to a portable media, before you decide to install a fresh copy of Windows.


I wish you a great time.

Regards,

CyrusX

(The original material and photos offered here do not provide any guarantee for the user. It is a little note just to help others. Any possible damage caused by this procedure will be the user's own responsibility.)

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Hi,

Using third-part software to provide file and folder-level security..Mmm.. It's not the solution I usually recommend to users. What I actually recommend is what I described in nearly full details in this same topic. But to offer you some solution I will try to open a path to your lost files if you are using Microsoft Windows 9.x, Me, 2000, NT 4.0, XP (all four editions), Windows 2000 Server, or Windows Server 2003. (I know how it feels because I lost my files once dude.)

• To begin, please go to Start>Run and then type "cmd". The Windows command prompt appears.
• Then change the directory with "cd" command and enter the exact path to your desired destination when you think you lost your files and press Enter.(If your files were/are in a different volume rather than the default root then first change the hard drive and then proceed with the instructions.)
• At the prompt type
  CODE
  dir /a
  first and press Enter(or Return key) to list the main directories along with the hidden files in your folder. If it scrolled up use a pipe like
  CODE
  dir /a | more
  to see the directories page by page. If you cannot see your files go to the next step.
• Type
  CODE
  cls
  and press Enter to clear the screen output and then type
  CODE
  attrib -h /S /D
  without braces and press Enter. The attribution of all hidden files in the directory will be set to visible. Try again using "dir" from the command prompt or simply close it and browse with Windows Explorer to see if your files are there again. (more help on command "attrib" is available by typing
  CODE
  help attrib
  in the command prompt.)
• If you are still unable to see your files then open command prompt again. Change the directory to the desired destination and then use
  CODE
  attrib -s /S /D
  to make all super-hidden system files visible. (This action is not recommended for Windows beginners.)
• If it does not solve your problem again you might be infected by a virus. The settings are still available from the Windows Registry but it does not recommended if you are not an advanced user of Windows.

Let's help each other. Chekhov once said: "Happiness does not and should not exist. If life has some meaning it is not to reach happiness. But it is to do good things for people as much as you can...".


May God bless your soul.


Regards,


CyrusX

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there is a freeware name TrueCrypt see http://www.truecrypt.org/
it can encrypt all your harddrive!! Its performance is good and fast.

The steps are
1. Create a large file as storage, if you create 1 GB file, you have a storage of 1 GB
2. The created file (*.tc) must be mounted using TrueCrypt and it becomes a new harddrive on your computer
3. Double click this harddrive, and you can move file into it, delete, play and copy or do anything that you can do on a real harddrive
4. If you dismount this drive, the drive is gone from your computer, all you have is that 1 GB large file. This file cannot be opened using any other tools because it is encrypted. The method of encryption is different from what is used in text base encryption, it in fact encrypt the header of the allocation table, while only a password can decrypt this allocation table, thus your file when stored in this 1 gb file is not stored based on sequence of free space, but it is randomly put inside.

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Thanks for adding that part about NTFS permissions and encryption, CyrusX. I was going to do so myself, but you have done the subject justice. I would also add that having a USB thumb drive or similar removable storage device is also a good way to protect valuable data. That way you don't keep your information on the local computer anyway, so it is away from prying eyes. This method is also useful for when using publicly accessible computers, such as at a library, internet cafe, etc. Just make sure that when you connect the device, it is not automatically shared, otherwise some unscrupulous admin on the network can access and copy your files while the device is connected. I personally use my 2GB miniSD card from my smartphone to store any critical, sensitive files, and can connect to it using an inexpensive USB card reader that I plug into the USB port when I go to an internet cafe. This also contains an encrypted copy of my password database, so no matter where I am, I have access to all my passwords. Also, I keep my Internet favorites/Bookmarks on it so they are portable too. Kinda handy when you're away from your home computer a lot.

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One way to make a compressed folder idiot proof (i dont know if this works on anything but windows)
Rename the compressed zipped folder, and remove the .zip bit, so that windows doesnt recognise it, it will no display a corrupted file, to get it back, rename it and add the .zip bit back.

I cant guarantee this will work, dot try it on anything important, and dont blame me if it goes wrong!

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