Acrobat Pro DC (for PDFs)
- Open the PDF in Acrobat DC.
- Go to File, then select Protect Using Password.
- Select whether you want the password to be required for Viewing or Editing the PDF.
- Type the password you want to use twice. The password strength indicator will let you know if the password you selected is weak, medium, strong, or best.
- Select Apply. Acrobat will display a confirmation message.
Word (for .doc, .docx, and other supported file types)
Windows:
- Go to File and select Protect Document, then Encrypt with Password.
- Type a password, and then type it again to confirm it.
- Save the file to ensure the password takes effect.
Mac:
- Go to Review, and select Protect Document.
- Under Security, you can select whether a person will need to enter a password to open the document, modify the document, or both. Enter each password again to confirm.
- Click OK, then save the document.
Excel (for .xlsx, .csv, and other supported file types)
Windows:
- Go to File and select Info.
- Select the box for Protect Workbook, and choose Encrypt with Password.
- Enter a password, then select OK.
- Confirm the password in the Re-enter Password box, then select OK.
- Save the file to ensure the password takes effect.
Mac:
- Go to File, then select Passwords.
- Enter a password in the Password to Open field. You can also enter a password in the Password to Modify field if needed.
- Choose Read-only if you want. This will put a "read-only mode" banner at the top of the document when opened but will not stop someone from making changes.
- Verify the password when prompted.
- Click OK, then save your spreadsheet.
PowerPoint (for .ppt, .pptx, and other supported file types)
Windows:
- Go to File, then select Info.
- Select Protect Presentation, then select Encrypt with Password.
- In the Password box, enter the password you want to use. Select OK.
- PowerPoint will prompt you to confirm the password by entering it once more.
- Save the file to ensure the password takes effect.
Mac:
- Go to File, then select Passwords.
- Under Password to open, select Encrypt this presentation and require a password to open.
- In the New password box, type the password you want to use.
- In the Verify box, type the password again, then select Set Password.
- If you want to require a password to modify, just repeat the steps above but choose modify instead of open.
- Click OK, then save your presentation.
7-Zip (for multiple files of any type)
- Install 7-Zip.
- If your computer is centrally managed, you can install 7-Zip from Software Center.
- Alternatively, you can download it from 7-zip.org.
- In File Explorer, select the files you want to zip.
- Rig/node/43651ht click on the highlighted files, select 7-zip.org, then Add to archive.
- Enter a name in the Archive field.
- Select ZIP Archive format.
- Enter a password in the Encryption section.
- Select OK.