How to Send Documents Securely on PC or Mac

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: April 4, 2019 Tested

This wikiHow teaches you how to safely share important documents with others in Windows or macOS.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Password-protecting a Microsoft Word Document (Windows and Mac)

1
Open the document in Microsoft Word. The quickest way to do this is to double-click its file name.
2
Click the File menu. It’s at the top-left corner of the window (or in the menu bar on a Mac).^{[1]
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3
Click Info.
4
Click Protect Document.
5
Click Encrypt with Password.
6
Create and confirm the document password. Follow the on-screen instructions to type and confirm the password that will protect your document.
7
Save the file. Click the File menu and select Save to save the new version of your document.
8
Share the document with others. Now that the file is password protected, you can send it in a variety of ways:
- Attach the document to an email message in Gmail, Outlook, or Mac Mail.
- Add the file to a cloud drive like Google Drive, iCloud Drive, or Dropbox.

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Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Attaching Files to Encrypted Messages in Outlook (Windows and Mac)

1
Open Outlook on your PC or Mac. It’s usually in All Apps area of the Start menu in Windows, and in the Applications folder in macOS.
2
Click New Email. It’s the envelope icon at the top-left corner of the window.
3
Click the File menu. It’s near the top-left corner of the screen.
- If you’re using Outlook 2010, click the Options menu, then select More Options.
4
Click Properties. If you’re using Outlook 2010, skip to the next step.
5
Click Security settings.
6
Check the box next to “Encrypt message contents and attachments.”
7
Click OK. This message will now be encrypted.
8
Click Close. Now that the encryption settings are set, you can create the message.
9
Enter a recipient, subject, and message.
10
Click Attach file. It’s the paperclip icon at the top of the new message. This opens your computer’s file browser.^{[2]
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11
Select the attachment and click Open. This attaches the file to the message.
12
Click Send. The message will now be delivered to the recipient.

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Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Encrypting a Document with EPS (Windows)

1
Navigate to the file you want to encrypt. An easy way to do this is to press ⊞ Win+E to open the File Explorer, then double-click the folder that contains the file.
2
Right-click the file or folder. A context menu will expand.
3
Click Properties. It’s the last option in the menu.
4
Click Advanced. It’s near the bottom-right corner of the window.
5
Check the box next to “Encrypt contents to secure data.” It’s the last option on the window.
6
Click OK. If you selected a folder, a confirmation message will appear.
7
Select Apply changes to this folder, subfolders and files.
8
Click OK. The selected file or folder is now encrypted. To access the file or folder, you’ll have to use your Windows login credentials.
9
Send the encrypted document.
- If you encrypted only one file, you can attach it to an email message. You can't compress the folder and then attach it to an email.
- If you encrypted a folder, upload it to a cloud drive like Google Drive, iCloud Drive, or Dropbox. Once uploaded, use the drive’s tools to share the files as you wish.

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Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Encrypting Documents with Disk Utility (Mac)

1
Add the file you want to encrypt to a folder. If you’re not sure how to do this, see Make a New Folder on a Computer.
2
Click the Go menu. It’s at the top of the screen.
3
Click Utilities. It’s near the bottom of the menu. A new Finder window will open.
4
Double-click Disk Utility. This opens the Disk Utility app.
5
Click the File menu. It’s in the menu bar at the top-left corner of the screen.
6
Hover the mouse over New. Another menu will expand.
7
Click Image from folder.
8
Select the folder you want to encrypt and click Choose.
9
Select 128-bit or 256-bit from the “encryption” drop-down menu.
10
Create a password. Enter a new password for the folder into the “Password” box, then again in the “Verify” box.
11
Click Choose.
12
Click Save.
13
Click Done. The files in the folder are now encrypted. Now you can upload the folder to a cloud drive like Google Drive, iCloud Drive, or Dropbox. Once uploaded, use the drive’s tools to share the files as you wish.

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Community Q&A

Question

How do you open an Outlook encryted message?

Nithik Ramesh

Community Answer

If you are using the Microsoft Outlook app, then you don't have to do anything to open the encrypted message. It will open as normal. If someone sent an outlook encrypted message to you, on another email service such as gmail or yahoo, you have to click on "Read the message" and it will redirect you to another site. Follow the on-screen instructions and you will receive a single-use code. Enter the code when asked for and you will be able to read the email.
Question

If you send encrypted emaills and attachments doesn't the recipient have to know password?

Rudy Toth

Community Answer

Try not to send those. It be better for the recipient if those type of files remain private and that would be better for yourself.
Question

Does the recipient of an encrypted file need a password to open it or read it? Does encrypting imply restrictions on copying, forwarding, etc.?

ValleyCool

Community Answer

If you are sending files between mobile phones and PC, just connect your phone to the computer via USB cable and the files will be shown on your computer, just drag them to the desktop. If you are transferring files between iPhone and PC, iPhone and Mac, or Android and Mac, then you may need backup and transfer tools like iCloud, Google Drive, or FonePaw Data Recovery.

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References

About This Article

Written by:

Nicole Levine, MFA

wikiHow Technology Writer

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Nicole Levine, MFA. Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions. This article has been viewed 75,039 times.

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Co-authors: 1

Updated: April 4, 2019

Views: 75,039

Categories: Windows

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