Password Protect Excel Worksheets

We are bound to create numerous work-related documents at office, but Excel worksheets often turn out to be some kind of repository containing crucial data. Even if you are not into hardcore accounting, these worksheets are extremely useful in more ways than one. They serve as mini databases and help you manage myriad tasks, quickly and efficiently. Therefore, one must safeguard the data that lie therein, especially if you are sharing these worksheets with other users. In such a scenario, it is necessary for you to err on the side of caution and protect your worksheets to ensure that no one can make changes in them without your permission.

In most versions of MS Office, Microsoft has introduced quite a few provisions to ensure that unauthorized users cannot make change in the worksheet. Even if you are using an older version of the Office Software, for instance Office 2000,  users can go to ‘Tools’ and from there select ‘Protection’. Here, you will come across options that enable you to protect a specific sheet or the entire workbook. You can make a choice as per your requirements and create a password to safeguard your data. However, you can protect Excel worksheets even better if you are suing newer versions like Office 2007.

In Excel 2007, just click on the ‘Review’ button and go to the ’Protect Sheet’ icon from the ‘Changes’ section. A dialogue box will appear, displaying a range of options that you may choose for data protection. In the list that appears, the first two option – ‘Select Locked Cells’ and ‘Select Unlocked Cells’ – are checked by default. This means, even if the worksheet is protected, all users of the Excel file can still copy the content of the locked cells. Uncheck these option if you don’t want users to copy the data from you worksheet.

Once you have your preferences clear, input a password of your choice in the box that says ‘Password to Protect Sheet’.  Hit the ‘OK’ button, reconfirm the password and click ‘OK’ once again. Finally, your excel worksheet is password protected. Now, you will have complete peace of mind, as your data will remain safe even if you share it with others. 

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Posted in: Tech