
CVE-2021-40444) which could only be exploited outside of "Protected View". The latter point is not just theoretical: There have been bugs (e.g. By disabling them, Office reduces the attack surface. Select the Viewing tab to open the options. These features (like editing, saving and printing) are generally considered "safe", but, like all software components, they can contain bugs. Change the viewing mode You can switch from View only to other modes granted by the document owner (Editing, Reviewing). You now have to confirm twice before macros can be executed (first to "Enable Editing", then to "Run macros") and, more importantly,.Thus, when opening those files, Office adds an additional layer of security by activating " Protected View": So, what's the point of "Protected View"?įiles from "untrusted" locations (such as e-mail attachments) have a higher probability of containing malware than files from your local documents folder. In its default configuration, all recent versions of Office won't run macros unless the user explicitly tells them to do it. Macro viruses exploited that fact and used Word and Outlook to spread. "Protected View" is an extra layer of security for files opened from "untrusted" locations (such as e-mail attachments).Ī long time ago, MS Office would automatically run macros contained in Office files.


Protecting a document from unauthorised changes and access In the Reenter Password to box, type the password again, and then click OK.In the Encrypt Document box, type a password, and then click OK.We provide Microsoft Word training classes in Los Angeles, and onsite classes countrywide. Important note, always use a password that you can remember so that you don't have to write it down. You can protect a document from being viewed by an unauthorized user, by using a password, which combine upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.
