Learn more about password protection in OneNote for Mac

There are a few things you'll want to keep in mind when using passwords to protect your notebooks.

• Passwords can be applied to one or more notebook sections, but not to entire notebooks at once.

• Passwords are case-sensitive. Make sure that the Caps Lock key is off before you enter a password.

• OneNote uses 128-bit AES encryption to secure password-protected notebook sections. If you forget your password, no one will be able to unlock your notes for you — not even Microsoft Technical Support. Take care when applying or changing passwords. Write down your passwords and keep them in a safe place if you think you may not be able to remember them.

• Password-protected sections are not included in notebook searches. To include the notes within a protected section in a search, you'll have to unlock the section first.

• To keep your notes secure, OneNote will automatically lock password-protected sections after a few minutes of inactivity.

• Although password protection improves the security of your personal information by making it harder for other people to read your notes without your permission, it is not a foolproof safeguard. Someone with physical access to your computer or device might still be able to figure out how to access your information. For this reason, we recommend that you avoid keeping extremely sensitive personal information in OneNote (for example, Social Security numbers or access codes to financial accounts).