How to Protect a Folder on Mac Without Paying 

Why Protect your Folders? 

Protecting your folders isn’t just a simple matter of privacy. Everybody has information that they don’t want other people to see, but everybody also has information that they really, really don’t want other people to see. If you don’t properly secure information that could greatly impact your life, then you’ll always be living with that nagging feeling hanging over your head whenever you lend someone your laptop to use. And let’s not forget about cybersecurity being extremely important in general nowadays, what with all the scammers running around. Thankfully, MacOS has a lot of options to help you keep your files secured, and you can even download some software on top of that if you feel you need extra security. This guide will walk you through how to protect a folder on Mac without paying a cent using methods like encryption and password protection along with some simpler protection like hiding your folder. 

This guide will walk you through step by step through both native MacoS tools and third-party apps that make locking down a folder fast and painless. You’ll see exactly how each method works, what its strengths and weaknesses are, and situations where you might want to use one over the other. By the end of this guide, you’ll know of several ways to lock, hide, or encrypt folders on your Mac. 

Native Methods 

Password Protect a Folder with Disk Utility 

Disk Utility is one of Apple’s native tools for managing drives, partitions, and disk images. You can use it to create an encrypted disk image that acts exactly like a secure folder. This is easily the most robust free option because it uses AES-128 or AES-256 encryption, which makes it impossible to read for anybody without your key or password. 

Follow these steps to create a .dmg file: 

1. Open Disk Utility by pressing Command + Space, type Disk Utility, and hit Enter. 

2. In the Menu Bar, go to File > New Image > Image from Folder. 

3. Choose the folder you want to protect and click Choose. 

4. In the dialogue box that appears, you want to do the following: 

• Name the image. 

• Choose a location to save it. 

• Under Encryption, select either 128-bit AES or 256-bit AES. 128-buit is faster, but 256-bit is more secure. 

5. Enter and confirm a strong password. You’ll want to uncheck “Remember password in my keychain” if you don’t want your macOS to automatically unlock it. 

6. Inside Image Format, select Read/Write if you want to be able to add or remove files later. 

7. Click Save and Disk Utility will create the encrypted .dmg file. 

8. To access your protected folder, double-click the .dmg file and enter your password. It will mount a drive in the Finder. 

Create a Password-Protected ZIP File 

If you prefer something quick and lightweight, you can create a password-protected ZIP archive of your folder using the Terminal. This is a somewhat technical solution as it requires inputting some commands, but it’s fairly straightforward. Do note that this solution isn’t as strong as Disk Utility, but it also doesn’t involve having to mount and remount the .dmg file you’ve created. 

1. Open the Terminal by navigating to the Spotlight features and typing Terminal. 

2. Type the following command without quotes: “zip -er ~/Desktop/SecureFolder.zip /path/to/folder”. Make sure you rewrite the section called “/path/to/folder” with the folder’s actual path.  

3. The Terminal will prompt you to enter and verify a password. 

4. The protected ZIP file will appear on your Desktop or whatever location you chose. Double-click it, enter the password, and the Finder will unzip it for you. 

Hide a Folder with the Terminal 

Sometimes, you don’t need full encryption. You just want to hide your folder from your little baby brother and stop him from poking around. Luckily, this is a native feature in macOS and you don’t have to look far. 

1. Open the Terminal by navigating to the Spotlight features and typing Terminal. 

2. Run the following command without quotes: “chflags hidden /path/to/folder”. Make sure to change /path/to/folder to the path of the folder that you want to hide. 

3. The folder will disappear. If you need to show it again, then you will want to enter the following commands: “chflags nohidden /path/to/folder”. Once again, make sure to change /path/to/folder to the path of the folder that you want to unhide. 

Third Party Software 

SimpleumSafe 

You can download this program by navigating to this link. 

SimpleumSafe is a program with a simple function. It acts like a secure vault. You create a Safe, add folders or files into it, and everything inside is automatically encrypted with AES-256. You can create multiple safes for different categories of files and then sync them with iCloud. On top of that, you can even open and access them on iOS! Unlike simply zipping a file with a password, SimpleumSafe keeps your files encrypted even while you’re using them. This multiplatform approach makes this program an extremely useful one to use if you’re deep into the Apple ecosystem.

To use SimpleumSafe, follow these instructions: 

1. Download the app from the link. Open the .dmg file, and then drag SimpleumSafe into your Applications folder. 

2. After installation, click “Create Safe”. 

3. Now choose a location to save your Safe. For best results, put it in a folder that’s at least two layers deep. 

4. Enter a Safe name. For example, if your work documents are inside it, name it accordingly. 

5. Set a strong master password. Make sure you remember it, but also make sure that it’s secure. If you lose the password, there is no way to recover it. 

6. Now you can open your safe by double clicking it and entering your password. You can drag and drop files and folders in automatically. Once you’ve added them, they are instantly encrypted. 

7. Now, you can simply double-click a file inside the safe to open it and work on it. Files are decrypted on the fly while you’re using them, but will automatically encrypt after you close the Safe again. 

8. Once you’re done working on the files, make sure to click the lock icon or close safe when done. The safe will disappear from the finder and the files are inaccessible unless you access them through SimpleumSafe. 

Encrypto 

Click here to download Encrypto. 

Encrypto is a free, lightweight encryption tool that you can download from the Mac App Store. Instead of managing a vault like SimpleumSafe, this program works on a file-by-file or folder-by-folder basis. You drag something in, give it a password, and Encrypto creates a secure package you can save or send. In fact, being able to send and share files is the main selling point of this program over its peers. It’s much more secure than typical cloud sharing sites such as Google Drive.

1. Download Encrypto from the Mac App Store. 

2. Launch the app. You should see a clean drag-and-drop interface. 

3. Drag any folder you want into the secure onto the program window.  

4. Set a password. You can also optionally add a password hint just in case you want to share it with other people. 

5. Save or share the encrypted file. To save, you can simply click save as to store the encrypted file locally. To share, you can just click share to send it directly via Airdrop, email, and more. 

6. To open an Encrypto-protected file, you’ll need to double click it and enter the password. 

Keeping Your Mac Safe 

Locking down your folders on Mac doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. Unlike its Windows counterpart, you don’t need to pay to upgrade your OS to get access to all sorts of useful functions like being able to encrypt your files. Whether or not you’re using those built-in tools like Disk Utility for AES-encrypted disk images, the Terminal for quick Zip password protection, or simple tricks to hide folders without software, macOS gives you multiple free ways to secure your data. 

Of course, there are always the third party software if you prefer the nice-looking UIs and user-friendly presentation. Apps like SimpleumSafe and Encrypto add polished interfaces and extra features, letting you manage or share encrypted files without a fuss. The right choice depends heavily on your needs: 

• For serious protection, you’ll want to use Disk Utility or SimpleumSafe. These both use AES-encryption that is the industry standard for Mac. 

• For simple encryption, creating an encrypted ZIP with the Terminal is the way to go. While less secure, this is more than enough for daily use and will suffice if you just want to put files of middling importance in. 

• For more casual hiding, you can simply use the chflags hidden command. This is usually enough if you’re just letting somebody look at your computer. 

• For secure sharing, you can’t beat Encrypto. This program lets you share secure files amongst your peers and beats something like Google Drive for sharing purposes. 

These methods should be enough to cover your general needs. Usually, protecting your files requires you to balance security, convenience, and cost. The good news is that these free methods are still relatively secure, and it’s up to you to pick the method that fits your workflow. We hope that this guide will help your peace of mind. 

If you use a Windows instead, make sure to check out our article on how to protect your Windows files for free by clicking here!