Setting a password on a flash drive or memory card. How to set a password on a flash drive - choose a data protection method How to set a password to open a flash drive

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20.03.2017

Nowadays, the issue of protecting personal information is more relevant than ever. And this applies not only to pages on social networks, because many people prefer to use all kinds of memory cards to store various documents, photos, videos and other files, since the flash drive has a compact design, it is convenient to carry and use. In addition, portable drives have a fairly impressive amount of memory, which allows you to store any personal data on them, including those that should be hidden from prying eyes.

However, despite all the advantages of removable media, there is always a risk that information will fall into the “wrong hands”, which means that there is a need to protect personal data and the most effective and simple method of solving this issue would be to put a password on the flash drive, which the system will require you to enter every time you try to use it.

How to password protect a flash drive: ways to solve the problem

There are several ways to set a password on a flash drive, each of which is convenient and effective for users.
So, there are three most popular methods:

Purchasing a special flash drive with a hard-wired set of encryption utilities. Such drive models are produced by all leading memory card manufacturers, but they are quite expensive.
Using various specialized utilities. This method is quite effective, but it is not very convenient, because the software must be installed on the computer and can only be used in the Administrator account, which means that it will be difficult to use this method somewhere in an Internet cafe.
Encrypting media using standard Windows tools. This method is perhaps one of the most convenient, because it can be easily used everywhere. However, certain difficulties may also arise here, since an inexperienced PC user may simply not be able to cope with such a task.

Let's take a closer look at the last two methods, because if everything is crystal clear with the purchase of specialized equipment, then choosing a utility or using system tools requires a more detailed analysis.

Selecting a data protection method

Nowadays, there is a huge amount of all kinds of software specializing in information protection, because in addition to “independent” programs, almost every flash drive manufacturer has its own solutions that differ in certain features.

Method 1: USB Safeguard

USB Safeguard is a portable utility that does not require installation on a computer.

In order to run it, you must first “reset” it to a flash drive. At the same time, when the program is launched, it “requires” reformatting the disk space of the flash drive to NTFS.

The utility automatically restarts and the user is prompted to read the license and agree to its terms.

After the button is pressed "I agree", a window appears requiring you to enter a password, confirm it and provide a hint.

Enter the password and click "OK" and we receive a message that the password has been successfully set.

Now the working window of the flash drive looks like this:

And in order to enter the application that is displayed, you need to enter a password.

After entering the password and pressing the button "Open", the user directly opens a protected section in which information can be saved.

At the same time, each restart of the flash drive requires similar manipulations with entering the password, and the user can call up a hint if he forgets it.

Based on the results of using the program, it can be noted that it is quite convenient for regular use, does not take up much space on a flash drive, which allows you to “fill” the media’s memory almost “to capacity.” The only difficulty may be the English interface, which will cause some difficulties for users who do not have sufficient experience in using a PC or at least basic knowledge of English.

Method 2: Lim Block Folder

This program is designed to password protect individual folders that can be located on flash drives and other removable media. Lim Block allows you to separately encrypt each folder and set different passwords for them. In addition, for greater security, you can set a separate password directly on the program so that strangers will not be able to use it.

So, when starting work, the user is greeted directly by the work field, where you can select various actions, such as, for example, setting a password to launch the utility.

However, we need to encrypt the folder with the data located on the flash drive, and therefore we click the adjacent button with the image of the folder and get the opportunity to select a specific folder for which encryption is required.

After selection, the folder is displayed in the work field, and the icon on the left side of the window becomes active.

After clicking on "Lock" a window appears with fields for entering and confirming a password,

And after entering the combination, the program asks if you need to install a hint.

After all the manipulations, the desired folder is still displayed in the work field, but the icon located below becomes active, by using which you can remove the password.

When checking the contents of a removable drive, it turns out that the password-protected folder is not displayed among others (even if you enable the display of hidden files).

That is, if before starting to work with the program, there were three folders with files on the flash drive,

then after all the manipulations we get, simply put, a “secret” folder that cannot be detected by an outside user.

Based on the results of the utility’s work, we can conclude that it quickly and efficiently copes with all tasks, and also provides reliable protection for encrypted files. At the same time, it has a simple and accessible interface that even a beginner can understand.

Method 3: Block office data

If the media contains Word, Excel documents, or a PowerPoint presentation, then access to them can be secured by setting a password for the documents. The main disadvantage of this method is that you will need to set a password for each file manually, and if there are a lot of them on the flash drive, this will take a lot of time.

Let's look at the process of blocking a Microsoft Office file:

Thus, even if someone gains access to the media, they will not be able to view or make changes to the documents. However, it will be able to view other, unprotected files without any problems.

Method 4: block using your phone

This method is only suitable for memory cards and only for owners of smartphones running the latest versions of Android or iOS. It is important to note that to block cards, it is also necessary that the phone itself is protected with some kind of password, which you can set through "Settings" by going to the section "Safety", and then in "Screen lock".

It is important to note that this method does not work on all phones, and the settings interface may vary slightly depending on the smartphone model. Instructions:

Go to "Settings" and find in the menu or tab "Safety", or “Device location and security”(the name depends on the phone model).
Next, find the item “Registration data storage” and there should be a button in it "Set password".
Set a password and confirm the action.

Using system tools

When using a flash drive, various situations may arise when installing and using special utilities is difficult or impossible. And this is where the system capabilities of Windows OS come to the rescue.

Method 1: BitLocker

If you have Windows 7 or higher installed, the system provides encryption of drives and their partitions using the standard BitLocker tool.

There are two ways to launch this tool:

Start Menu - Control Panel - BitLocker Drive Encryption

My Computer - Removable Disk - Enable BitLocker

At the same time, you can also display the menu "Help and Support" and learn more about the capabilities of the utility. However, we check the box and enter the password, click "Further" for further work.

The next message prompts the user to choose how to save the key (it can be saved to a file or printed).

Choose "Save the recovery key to a file" and we get a window for selecting the folder to save the key.

We save the key and receive a text file with the appropriate name in the folder specified for saving.

At the same time, the text file contains the recovery key and identifier.

However, let's return directly to the program and perform the next step. Button "Further" brings us to disk encryption.

Click "Start encryption" and wait for the process to complete.

It is perhaps worth noting that encryption takes quite a long time and it directly depends on the volume of data. However, the system displays a completion message.

You need to check the final result. If you open "My computer", you can see a rather unusual flash drive icon, which means that the media is password protected.

If the flash drive is connected to the computer, the system displays a message asking you to enter a password.

In this case, you can note the point “In the future, automatically unlock this computer”, if it is the user’s personal PC and is guaranteed not to be used by strangers. After entering the password, the autorun window appears and the removable media can be used as usual.

It is worth noting that this tool is quite easy to use and even an inexperienced user can cope with encrypting a flash drive. In addition, BitLocker does not require downloading and installation, which means that it can be freely used in any situation.

Method 2: blocking by the archiver

If there are many different files stored on a flash drive and assigning a password to each one would be too long or impossible, then you can move them into one archive and set a password for the entire archive at once. This method is more convenient and reliable, because you can wrap all the data on the media in one archive, put a password on it and extract the necessary files if necessary (you can work with most files without extracting them from the archive).

To set a password for the archive, follow these instructions:

This is a quick way to password-protect large amounts of information on Flash media, but if you forget or lose the password, it will be extremely difficult to restore access to the archive.

In addition to the above methods and software, of course, there is a fairly large amount of various software that is installed on a computer, flash drive or other media, has varying efficiency and level of complexity, so each user can choose the most appropriate solution for ensuring the security of personal data.

Often we have to use removable media to store personal files or valuable information. For these purposes, you can buy a flash drive with a keyboard for a PIN code or a fingerprint scanner. But such a pleasure is not cheap, so it’s easier to resort to software methods for setting a password on a flash drive, which we’ll talk about later.

To set a password on a portable drive, you can use one of the following utilities:

Rohos Mini Drive;
USB Flash Security;
TrueCrypt;
Bitlocker.

Perhaps not all options are suitable for your flash drive, so it is better to try a few of them before giving up trying to complete the task.

Method 1: Rohos Mini Drive

This utility is free and easy to use. It will not password protect the entire drive, but only a certain section of it.

To use this program, do this:

By the way, with Rohos Mini Drive you can put a password on a folder and on some applications. The procedure will be exactly the same as described above, but all actions are performed with a separate folder or shortcut.

Method 2: USB Flash Security

This utility will allow you to protect all files on a flash drive with a password in a few clicks. To download the free version, on the official website you need to click the button "Download Free edition".

And to take advantage of the ability of this software to put passwords on flash drives, do the following:

Now you can again dump the files that you previously transferred to your computer onto the USB drive. When you reinsert it, it will again be under a password, and it does not matter whether this program is installed on this computer or not.

Method 3: TrueCrypt

The program is very functional, perhaps it has the largest number of functions among all the software samples presented in our review. If you wish, you can password protect not only a flash drive, but also an entire hard drive. But before doing anything, download it on your computer.

Using the program looks like this:

Launch the program and click the button "Create Volume".

Check “Encrypt non-system partition/disk” and press "Further".

In our case it will be enough to create "Regular Volume". Click "Further".

Select your flash drive and click "Further".

If you select “Create and format an encrypted volume”, then all data on the media will be deleted, but the volume will be created faster. And if you choose "Encrypt partition in place", the data will be saved, but the procedure will take longer. Once you have made your choice, click "Further".

IN "Encryption settings" It's better to leave everything as default and just click "Further". Do it.

Make sure the specified media capacity is correct and press "Further".

Enter and confirm the password you created. Click "Further". We also recommend that you specify a key file that can help restore data if the password is forgotten.

Specify your preferred file system and click "Post".

Confirm the action by clicking the button "Yes" in the next window.

When the procedure is finished, press "Exit".

Your flash drive will look like the one shown in the photo below. This also means that the procedure was completed successfully.

There is no need to touch her. The exception is when encryption is no longer required. To access the created volume, click "Automount" in the main program window.

Enter your password and click "OK".

In the list of hard drives you can now find a new drive, which will be available if you insert a flash drive and run the same automount. When finished using the button, press "Unmount" and you can remove the media.

This method may seem complicated, but experts confidently say that there is nothing more reliable than it.

USB drives are small, portable and versatile storage devices. Flash drives are very convenient for transferring data between computers. However, due to their portability and compact size, USB media can be easily lost. Therefore, you need to take care of reliable protection of the data on the flash drive.

Unfortunately, you can't simply set a password on the entire drive like you can with a smartphone or computer. To enhance the protection of your files, you need to use encryption. If you don't want to separately purchase a secure, hardware-encrypted flash memory device, you can use free software to get a similar level of security.

In this article, we have provided several simple ways to protect files and folders on a USB flash drive.

If you need to protect only individual important documents, and you do not need to encrypt entire folders, then you can simply limit yourself to setting password protection for individual files.

Many programs, including Word and Excel, allow you to save files with a password.

For example, when the required document is open in the Microsoft Word text editor, you can go to the menu File > Details, select item Document protection and option Encrypt with password.

All that remains is to set a secure password and confirm its installation. Be sure to save the document and be sure to remember or write down the password.

Download the portable version of VeraCrypt and extract it to a USB drive. When you launch the application, a list of available drive letters will be displayed. Select a letter and press Create Volume

To create a virtual encrypted disk inside a file, select the option Create an encrypted file container and click "Next".

In the next step, you can select the volume type: regular or hidden. Using a hidden volume reduces the risk of someone forcing you to reveal your password. In our example, we will create a regular volume. Next, select the location of the encrypted volume – a removable USB drive.

Configure encryption and specify the volume size (must not exceed the size of a USB drive). Then select the encryption and hash algorithm, you can use the default settings. Then set your volume password. In the next step, your random mouse movements will determine the cryptographic strength of the encryption.

Once encryption is complete, each time you connect the USB drive to any computer, you can run the VeraCrypt hosted on it and mount the encrypted file container to gain access to the data.

VeraCrypt supports encryption of entire partitions and storage devices.

Download VeraCrypt and install the program on your PC. When you launch the application, a list of available drive letters will be displayed. Select a letter and press Create Volume. The VeraCrypt Volume Creation Wizard will launch.

To encrypt the entire USB drive, select the option Encrypt a non-system partition/drive and click "Next".

In the next step, you can select the volume type: regular or hidden. Using a hidden volume reduces the risk of someone forcing you to reveal your password.

On the next screen of the wizard you need to select the device, i.e. our removable USB drive, and then click “OK” and “Next”.

In our example, we will create a regular volume. On the next screen of the wizard you need to select the device, i.e. our removable USB drive, and then click “OK” and “Next”.

To encrypt the entire USB drive, select Encrypt the partition in place and click "Next". VeraCrypt will warn you that you should have a backup copy of your data so that if something goes wrong during encryption, you can restore access to your files. Then select the encryption and hash algorithm, you can use the default settings. Then set your volume password. In the next step, your random mouse movements will determine the cryptographic strength of the encryption.

Then select the cleaning mode. The more rewrite cycles, the more reliable the cleaning. In the final step, select Encryption to start the encryption process.

Once encryption is complete, each time you connect the USB drive to your computer, you will need to mount it using VeraCrypt to gain access to the data.

Many modern archivers, including the free 7-Zip, support AES-256 encryption and password protection of files.

Install 7-Zip, then right-click on the file or folder on your USB drive and select 7-Zip > Add to archive. In the "Add to Archive" window, select the archive format and set a password. Click "OK" to begin the archiving and encryption process.

The question of how to put a password on a flash drive has become quite relevant in connection with the advent of portable, portable sources of information.

USB drives have firmly entered modern life, replacing floppy disks and rewritable CDs and DVDs. They are distinguished by reliability, durability, the ability to store a sufficiently large volume of a wide variety of information, mobility, and small size. The latter factor may contribute to the loss of a USB drive with subsequent unauthorized use of the information stored on it by third parties.

In this regard, there is a need to protect the flash drive with a password.

How to put a password on a USB flash drive to protect the files stored on it? There are many ways to protect information, here are some of them:

Using third-party software to protect portable USB storage.
Using built-in and optional software to protect data.
Use of specialized secure flash drives.

Let's consider the proposed options in more detail.

Today there is a considerable amount of paid and free software for data protection. Let's focus on free programs.

Rohos Mini Drive - software for setting a password on a flash drive. The developers managed to combine the small size of the program with fairly extensive functionality. The free version allows you to install data protection on flash drives with a capacity of 2 GB, or on partitions specially created by the program up to 2 GB in size. Moreover, you can use the specified software without administrator rights. The program is installed directly onto the flash drive. After creating a protected partition, you can view the encrypted data on any computer by running the Rohos Mini.exe program from the root directory of the USB drive.

To avoid any questions about how to remove a password from a flash drive, let us immediately clarify that it is very important to save the secret code, otherwise it will be almost impossible to restore encrypted data after it is lost. In versions > 1.10 of the Rohos Mini Drive program, it is possible to create a special file - a key, which allows you to open protected data if the PIN code is lost.

Another program for protecting flash drives is USB Safeguard. In terms of functionality and encryption algorithms, it is very similar to Rohos Mini Drive. One of the differences between this software is that the locking and unlocking procedure must be repeated each time you work with files, and you can use a new secret code each time.

Setting a password on USB, in addition to the above methods, can also be done using Anvide Lock Folder. This small-sized free program for setting a password on a flash drive does not require downloading and can be launched from anywhere. The interface is clear: it allows you to install code protection on any folder, not only on external USB drives, but also to protect data on other storage media.

Using built-in and optional software

How to put a password on a flash drive without programs? A flash drive can be protected with a password without the use of third-party software. We highlight three main options:

Protect Microsoft Office documents.
Using the capabilities of archivers.
Using standard Windows tools.

Microsoft Office files can be protected by tools built into the software. A reliable way in this case is to install code protection on the file itself. To do this, select “Save As” from the “File” menu, and in the save dialog box, expand “Tools” and select “General Options.” In the dialog box that appears, you can set a PIN code to protect against unauthorized viewing and editing.

Another way to password protect a flash drive without special software is to use an archiver. Archivers, such as WinRAR, are installed on almost all computers. In the case of the WinRAR archiver, we create a self-extracting, password-protected archive and transfer it to an external USB drive. Then the archive can be transferred in this way from a protected drive to any computer and unpacked with a password. The method is old, but very reliable and proven. The main thing is not to lose the secret code word, since in this case there is no exact answer to the question of how to remove the password from a flash drive.

How to put a password on a flash drive without using third-party software for Windows 7, 8 users? In this case, no additional programs will be needed - they already have the necessary tool integrated into Windows, namely the built-in BitLocker data encryptor.

Using BitLocker, you can get a password-protected USB drive. One of the features of this software is the ability to create a “spare” key in case the secret code is lost. Brief instructions for setting a password on a flash drive using BitLocker:

Connect a USB drive to the PC.

In the “My Computer” folder, hover the cursor over the flash drive, right-click to enter the context menu and select BitLocker there.

In the window that appears, select “Use a password to unlock the flash drive” and enter the password.

Using specialized secure flash drives

The most “radical” option for setting a password on a flash drive is to purchase a specialized USB drive. Currently, portable portable information storage devices with a built-in keyboard are available for sale, with the help of which code protection is installed. A device password-protected in this way is a very reliable storage, the data in which is protected by 256-bit AES encryption. It is almost impossible to extract them without knowing the password. The price of such a USB drive is higher compared to the cost of conventional flash drives.

It should be understood that all methods for protecting portable USB drives and the data on them were clearly not developed so that in the future this protected data could easily be read by any unauthorized third party. Therefore, in order to avoid questions about how to unlock a flash drive if you forgot your password, take responsibility for creating and saving the secret code, since restoring access to information is a difficult matter and not always feasible.

If the information is not only confidential, but also very important, it is better to use several protected flash drives with copies of the necessary files. Rely on yourself first of all, since the programs offered for recovering encrypted files and restoring access are not effective in 99% of cases, it is better not to rely on them.

Thus, how to password-protect a USB flash drive and which method to choose for password protection (use built-in/third-party software, purchase a specialized secure USB drive (flash drive with a code)), everyone must decide for themselves, depending on their capabilities and skills.

A flash drive is a useful and in many situations irreplaceable thing. After all, on it we store gigabytes and even terabytes of a wide variety of data - photos, videos, documents, copies of them, all useful software, and much more. etc. Moreover, most of what is usually contained on the medium is personal and confidential information. Therefore, many users set passwords on removable drives for protection. This can be done in different ways. Do you want to know how to protect a flash drive and everything stored on it from unauthorized persons? Then enjoy reading!

On Windows Vista, 7 and 8 (though not on all versions - only on server, corporate, professional, etc.) there is a special application. It's called Bitlocker. This program is designed to encrypt data stored on hard drives and portable media. The utility is also suitable for setting a password and limiting access to the flash drive.

At the same time, Bitlocker encryption technology is quite reliable. The only caveat is that you cannot set a password for a separate folder or file. Only for the entire disk.

How to protect a USB device using Bitlocker? It is enough to do the following:

After all the described manipulations, the flash drive will become protected. You can access it only after entering the correct password.

Using WinRAR archiver

There is another fairly simple way to password protect data on a flash drive. Moreover, all you need is a regular WinRAR archiver, which is available on most computers.

How can you use this program to encrypt access to the media? It's simple. WinRAR has a password setting feature. The user is only required to do the following:

We connect the flash drive to the PC or laptop.
Go to the “My Computer” folder (for Windows 8 and 10 – “This Computer”).
Right-click on the media.
In the context menu that appears, select “Add to archive”. It will probably be written in English. Then Add to archive.
Next, go to the “General” or “Advanced” tab. Depending on the version of the archiver, in some of them there is a “Set password” button. You just need to click on it.
Enter the password in the field marked in the screenshot. Confirm it by clicking OK.

After which all your data will be transferred to the archive on a flash drive. If you want to open it, you will have to enter the code word you set earlier. In this case, access to the contents of the drive can be obtained on any computer that has an archiver program. And not necessarily WinRAR. Any other one with similar functionality will do. The same 7-zip.

We use special software

Today, there are dozens of programs for setting a password on different media and disks. Naturally, such software can be used to put a password on a flash drive.

Among the most interesting such utilities:

USB Safeguard;
Lockngo;
CyberSafe Top Secret;
Rohos Mini Drive, etc.

Let's now briefly talk about each program.

USBSafeguard

Very convenient application. No installation required. There is a free version. But its functionality is limited. For example, you can only password protect a disk with a capacity of no more than 2 GB.

You can download the program on Mac, Linux and Windows. Very easy to use. Simply download the file usbsafeguard.exe and place it on a USB drive. Next, open it from the drive and enter a password.

The operating principle of this program is reminiscent of USB Safeguard. But it differs favorably in that there are no restrictions on disk space. In addition, a Russified menu is provided. You can use it to protect any portable drives, not only those with a USB interface, but also micro SD.

CyberSafe Top Secret

According to many users, this is one of the best encryption tools. The utility is available in different versions. There is a more simplified, professional, and corporate modification. For home use and regular password protection of a flash drive, the free version is sufficient.

There are several encryption algorithms available in CyberSafe Top Secret. At the same time, you can block access to individual files, as well as to containers, disk partitions and entire removable media. The menu is Russified. The interface is clear and simple. The only caveat is that you won’t be able to open the flash drive on a PC where this program is not installed.

Rohos Mini Drive

Another quite convenient and free utility. Newbie users will definitely like it. True, it does not protect the entire disk, but only a specified part of it. AES encryption algorithm with a key length of 256 bit. Otherwise, in terms of functionality, Rohos Mini Drive is close to other similar programs mentioned above.

We use drives with hardware protection

You can also find flash drives with hardware data protection on sale. They are suitable for those users who want to do without special programs, but at the same time want to be sure that no one else will gain access to their personal information stored on a removable drive.

On the body of such media there are buttons with which the user enters a password. Have you seen such devices? Then pay attention to Toshiba Encrypted USB Flash Drive. This is exactly a popular representative of flash drives with hardware protection.

By the way, using such drives is not difficult. Connect the device to the USB port, enter the combination on the keyboard, which is located on the socket of the flash drive itself. That's all!

What if…?

But what should the user do if he forgot the password for the flash drive? Is there any way to remove it and install a new one? This is quite difficult, and sometimes even impossible. After all, if the code word is lost, then the drive usually cannot be read or formatted. This is the whole point of encrypting portable media. So that if a flash drive is lost, the owner does not worry that someone will be able to access personal information stored on it.

But what if the password is hopelessly lost? You can seek help from specialists who know how to use hacking programs. But often even hackers are unable to restore access to files on protected media. In addition, using hacking programs can damage the drive and disable it.

If the flash drive is locked via Bitlocker, then, as a rule, in this case you can recover the password using a recovery key. Depending on what you choose, it may be stored in your Microsoft account, on a paper copy, or as a separate file. Also, if the protection is installed through special programs, then it makes sense to try resetting the password. Some utilities provide a similar feature. But many don't.

So it's best to just be careful. That is, come up with a password that you definitely won’t forget.