One essential layer of protection for your notes and other personal data is using strong passwords. Whether you use note-taking apps, online diaries, or cloud-based storage services, hard-to-guess passwords for each account are a must to value their privacy and security.
Risks of unprotected notes
Many of us record our innermost thoughts, feelings, plans, and experiences in personal notes. These notes sensitive information we don’t want anyone else to access, such as:
- Private reflections and emotions
- Financial account details
- Business plans or trade secrets
- Personal journal entries and diaries
- Creative works like poems, stories, or song lyrics
How safe is privnote? If these private notes fell into the wrong hands, the consequences could be devastating. Identity theft, public embarrassment, industrial espionage, financial fraud, and relationship breakdowns are just some potential outcomes of someone accessing your unsecured notes. Additionally, public wifi networks and unsecured apps or storage services provide easy targets for hackers looking to steal personal information. Without password protection, your private notes could be accessible to strangers online.
Practicing good password hygiene
Along with creating robust passwords for each account, practicing good password hygiene is also vital for keeping your notes and data secure:
- Update passwords regularly every 60-90 days
- Avoid using the same passwords on multiple sites
- Don’t share passwords with others unless necessary
- Use a password manager to organize and protect passwords
- Enable two-factor authentication when available
- Watch for security alerts about breaches and change affected passwords immediately
With strong, unique passwords for every account, plus solid password hygiene habits, you create a far more secure environment for your private notes and sensitive data.
Securing your notes on different platforms
For added security, enable password protection not just on your accounts, but on your actual note files themselves. This gives an extra layer of defense in case someone gains access to your unlocked devices.
- Microsoft Word documents – Under File > Info > Protect Document > Encrypt with Password to require a password to open the document.
- Apple notes – The note, tap the Share icon and turn on Password to set a password which will be required to open that note again. You also set a password to protect the entire Apple Notes app.
- Google docs – Click File > Protect document > Restrict access to set a password to control document access. Only those who enter the password view or edit the doc.
- Evernote – Go to Settings > Security > Encryption password and add a password to encrypt all text in your notes. Anyone accessing your Evernote without the password will see unreadable encrypted text.
- Onenote – No built-in password protection, but you protect access to sections by linking them to your Microsoft account. Users must log into their Microsoft account to view password-protected sections.
- Bear app – Notes be locked with Face ID, Touch ID, or a passcode by turning on Settings > Security & Privacy > Passcode.
- Password-protected paper notebooks – Use a tiny luggage lock through the spiral rings or a locking diary box. Low-tech but effective!
