How to Password Protect a Word Document

Protect your document from being opened or edited

  1. Click Review > Protect Document.

    On the Review tab, Protect Document is highlighted

  2. Under Security, you can select whether to enter a password to open the document, modify the document, or both. Enter each password again to confirm.

    On the Password Protect dialog box, Security is highlighted

    • Passwords are case-sensitive and can be a maximum of 15 characters long.

    • If you lose or forget your password, Word won't be able to recover it for you. Be sure to keep the a copy of the password in a safe place or create a strong password that you’ll remember.

  3. Click OK.

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