Passwords and logins for Word files or folders

[Tom Stage]

Greetings -

I'm pretty sure the answer is no but I'm going to ask the question anyhow:

Is it possible to add password or login access to a specific Word.doc or folders for protecting sensitive material in that document or folder?

My older brother asked me this recently and I told him I didn't think so.  I googled the topic and didn't find anything so I'm assuming the answer is no.  I appreciate any confirmation in that regard - one way or the other.

Thanks,

Tom

[#2]

You can easily do this at a document level - click File > Info > Protect Document > Encrypt with Password.

[#3]

It's certainly possible to encrypt a Word document, this is a built-in option if you haven't seen it already and with a long complex password, it's a fairly secure option, especially in more recent versions of Office that use AES 256-bit encryption.  Just don't forget the password as there will be no way to access the document or recover the data otherwise!  

Add or remove protection in your document, workbook, or presentation

In a work environment, typically folders or sites and permissions might be used to protect documents, controlling who can access this data in the first place though this can be taken further with things like Azure Information Protection.

[#4]

Worth mentioning that if adding a password, make a note of it, as its almost impossible (I suspect) to access the file if the user forgets what the password was. Microsoft also have products such as AD-IRM (Active Directory Info Rights Management) where you can encrypt files without passwords and provide access at an individual level via Active Directory. Might be a bit more than you need but if you've a large number of users that need encryption might be worth looking in to.

[#5]

Geoff, Cian, and Allan -

Thank you so much for the help!  I learned something new and applicable and my brother will be thrilled to know that this is an option. =O)

Tom