Forum Discussion
Is there a way to reset a password locked word document that I developed?
Is there a way to reset a password locked word document that I developed? The document will not except the password that I set. Its a very important document. There must be some sort of over ride available?
4 Replies
If you created the Word document and remember the password, you can simply open it and remove the password from File → Info → Protect Document → Encrypt with Password. If you’ve forgotten the password, there’s no official way to reset it, but you can try using a backup copy or trusted recovery tools just keep in mind that success isn’t guaranteed.
Yeah, that's all fine but what if your protected file was written & saved 25 years ago ? I have found that opening older versions of Word really test my Word competency.
If this is a password to open, there are no hacks other than brute force. That is, try every combination you can think of. The document will not self-destruct after a certain number of failed attempts. If it is really important, you can buy programs that do this, but keep in mind you are handing over your credit card information to Russian hackers and giving them access to your computer!
If anyone could come to the internet and ask how to get around it, such password protection would be worthless.
If it is a document you can open and read, but you can't change, there are things you can do.
Years ago I too, found I could not open Word .docs that I had 'protected'. I cannot recall how I got around this but I learnt one lesson, i.e., DO NOT LOCK DOCUMENTS BEHIND A PASSWORD ! If you do, make it simple and WRITE IT DOWN in your journal for future reference.
Annoying, isn't it !
