Using and Managing Word Encryption

Word makes it easy for users to encrypt their documents, using various encryption schemes, ranging from weak encryption to strong 128-bit RC4 encryption. Follow these steps to encrypt a document:

  1. Choose File, Save As
  2. In the Save As dialog box, click Tools, Security Options. The Security tab of the Options dialog box opens
  3. In the Password to Open text box, enter a password. By default, passwords can be up to 15 characters long and can contain symbols and numerals as well as letters. For security reasons, Word displays asterisks onscreen as you type your password.
  4. To control what form of encryption to use, click the Advanced button. The Encryption Type dialog box appears
  5. Select a type of encryption from the Choose an Encryption Type scroll box
  6. If you choose an RC4 encryption scheme, you can also choose a key length and specify whether to encrypt document properties

      7. Consider the following when choosing an encryption type:

    • If your document must be read on Office 97 or Office 2000 systems, you will typically need to select Office 97/2000 or Weak Encryption (XOR).
    • XOR weak encryption, which was once the only type of encryption available for Word documents, is very weak encryption
    • If you clear the Encrypt Document Properties check box, Word’s Search feature will still be able to find files based on the contents of the Properties dialog box, though users without the correct password will not be able to open them
    • Although RC4 encryption is relatively strong, the strength depends on the key length you choose. As computers have become more powerful, 40-bit key length encryption has become far less secure. Fifty-six-bit key lengths take 65,536 times longer to crack, but even these are increasingly vulnerable. Expert recommendations now range from 90-bit to 128-bit key lengths and beyond.
  7. Click OK to return to the Security tab
  8. Click OK. Word displays the Confirm Password dialog box







  9. Reenter the password exactly as you typed it the first time. (Use the same capitalization; passwords are case sensitive.)
  10. Click OK
  11. Click Save. Word saves the file

    12. Encrypted files cannot be indexed by the Windows file indexing services that may be running on your computer

    Note: After documents are encrypted, Word contains no feature for decrypting them without a password. Hence if you forget your password, you will not be able to be open your document. Further, if your colleague forgets a password, or leaves the organization and does not share the password with someone, you will not be able to open his/her documents.

Removing Password Protection from a File

If a file is encrypted using password protection, you can remove it. You have to open the file first (which requires entering the password). To remove the password do the following:

  1. Open the file and type the password when prompted
  2. Choose File, Save As.
  3. In the Save As dialog box, choose Tools, Security Options
  4. In the Password to Open box, delete the asterisks corresponding to the existing password
  5. Click OK
  6. Click Save