{
  "slug": "microsoft-word",
  "name": "Microsoft Word",
  "maker": "Microsoft",
  "category": "notes",
  "verdict": "o",
  "answer": "Only if you turn on password encryption, one document at a time, in Word on Windows or Mac. Otherwise Microsoft can read the documents you save to OneDrive. A locked document can't be opened in a browser or edited together with others.",
  "title": "Is Microsoft Word encrypted? Documents saved to OneDrive",
  "description": "Microsoft can read Word documents saved to OneDrive, unless you lock each one with a password in Word on Windows or Mac. Checked at the source.",
  "parts": [
    {
      "key": "note",
      "status": "o",
      "words": "Only you, once you turn it on",
      "note": "Each document needs its own password, set in Word on Windows or Mac, and a locked one can't be opened in a browser or edited together with others; without a password, Microsoft holds the keys to documents in OneDrive.",
      "sources": [
        1,
        2,
        3,
        4
      ],
      "label": "Your notes and docs"
    },
    {
      "key": "share",
      "status": "n",
      "words": "Microsoft can read it",
      "note": "Editing together doesn't work with a password-locked document, so documents you share for co-editing are open to Microsoft.",
      "sources": [
        3,
        4
      ],
      "label": "Shared with others"
    },
    {
      "key": "pq",
      "status": "x",
      "words": "Not yet",
      "note": "No post-quantum protection for stored documents announced as of 25 October 2026; Microsoft says it aims to move its products to it by 2029.",
      "sources": [
        7
      ],
      "label": "Post-quantum"
    }
  ],
  "extra_parts": [],
  "keys": "Microsoft holds the keys to documents in OneDrive, but only your password opens a password-locked document.",
  "can_see": "Documents you save to OneDrive, which Microsoft indexes for search, and the content you send to connected features such as Editor or translation.",
  "business": "On business plans, admins with Microsoft 365 E5 can set up Double Key Encryption, so Microsoft can't open labelled documents.",
  "fix": {
    "title": "Lock a document with a password",
    "steps": [
      "Open the document in Word on Windows or Mac. Word for the web can't do this.",
      "On Windows, select File › Info › Protect Document › Encrypt with Password. On a Mac, select Review › Protect › Protect Document.",
      "Type a password to open the document, type it again to confirm, then save."
    ],
    "after": "Takes a minute for each document. Word can't recover a lost password, so keep it somewhere safe. A locked document can't be opened in a browser or edited together with others."
  },
  "fix_line": "Lock each document with a password: File › Info › Protect Document › Encrypt with Password, in Word for Windows.",
  "sections": [
    {
      "id": "can-microsoft-read-my-word-documents",
      "q": "Can Microsoft read my Word documents?",
      "a": "If they're saved to OneDrive, yes. Microsoft says each file is encrypted at rest with its own key, and it keeps the master keys that protect those keys [4][8]. Its privacy statement says it indexes your OneDrive documents so you can search them, and that some Word features use your document's content to make suggestions [5].\n\nOn some business plans, admins can add Double Key Encryption, which Microsoft says keeps labelled documents out of reach of its online services, including Copilot [6]."
    },
    {
      "id": "how-do-i-password-protect-a-word-document",
      "q": "How do I password protect a Word document?",
      "a": "In Word for Windows, select File › Info › Protect Document › Encrypt with Password. On a Mac, use Review › Protect › Protect Document and set a password to open it [1]. Word for the web can't add a password [1].\n\nMicrosoft says Word can't recover a lost document password [1]. Word for the web can't open documents encrypted with a password, so you open them in the desktop app [2]. Only a password to open locks the document: one that only stops changes still lets it open for reading in a browser [2]."
    },
    {
      "id": "can-i-share-a-password-protected-word-document",
      "q": "Can I share a password-protected Word document?",
      "a": "You can send it, and anyone with the password can open it in the Word desktop app [2]. But editing together doesn't work on password-protected documents [3]. To edit with others, you'd have to remove the password, and then Microsoft can read the document again [4]."
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Protect a Word document with a password (Microsoft Support)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/word/protect-a-word-document-with-a-password",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Differences between using a document in the browser and in Word (Microsoft Support)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/word/differences-between-using-a-document-in-the-browser-and-in-word",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Troubleshoot co-authoring Word documents (Microsoft Support)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/word/troubleshoot-co-authoring-word-documents",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "How OneDrive safeguards your data in the cloud (Microsoft Support)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/onedrive/how-onedrive-safeguards-your-data-in-the-cloud",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Microsoft Privacy Statement (updated September 2026)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/privacy/privacystatement",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Double Key Encryption (DKE) (Microsoft Learn)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/purview/double-key-encryption",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Accelerating the quantum-safe timeline (Microsoft Security Blog, 30 June 2026)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2026/06/30/microsoft-advances-quantum-safe-security-as-the-risk-timeline-shifts/",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Encryption in Microsoft 365 (Microsoft Learn)",
      "publisher": "Microsoft",
      "url": "https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/purview/encryption",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    }
  ],
  "changes": [
    {
      "date": "2026-10-25",
      "text": "First published."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "google-docs",
    "onedrive",
    "notion",
    "apple-notes",
    "google-keep"
  ],
  "url": "https://isitencrypted.com/microsoft-word/",
  "checked": "2026-10-25"
}