How to create a stealth folder on Windows to protect data

Have you ever wanted to hide a file or folder and want others to see it? With this trick, you can make the folder invisible right on your computer, and invisible to the human eye. While there are certainly better (and safer) ways to hide filesbut this quick tip is much more fun.

To perform this feat, you create a folder with no name and no icon. To get started, right-click an empty spot on your desktop, click New -> Folder.

A new folder appears on the screen with the name New Folder highlighted so you can rename it.

When you rename the folder, press and hold Alt as you type the number 255 on the right numeric keypad, and then press Enter. Note that you must enter the numbers on the numeric keypad, not the horizontal number keys at the top of the keyboard.

What you are doing is typing a special character that is not on the keyboard with the ASCII character code. This names the folder with an invisible character, which does not appear in Windows Explorer.

Now that the hidden folder name is not visible on the Desktop, next we make the folder’s icon invisible. Right click on the folder and select Properties.

Click on the tab “Customizethen click “Change Icon” in the “Folder Icons“.

In the window”Change Icon for Folderdrag the mouse to the left, find the invisible icon and click “OK.”

Click OK again to close the window Properties! Your folder icon is gone! And you’ve got a stealth folder, no one knows.

You can still find the folder on the Desktop if you use the mouse to highlight all of the Desktop to select all the folders. If left to normal, the folder is still invisible. The folder will also hide in File Explorer and will stay that way, even with its contents. (Explorer usually shows a preview of files in a folder in its icon).

If you want to hide multiple folders at once on your desktop, repeat the above process, but press Alt + 255 multiple times to enter multiple stealth characters. Two directories cannot have the same name, so the second directory will need two spaces.

You can repeat the same pattern with three or more folders, just increase the number of invisible spaces when naming folders.

Is it safe to create stealth folders?

Obviously, this is not a safe way to hide files. Anyone can find the contents of a stealth folder through the Windows search function. Someone can also accidentally discover it when he is using the desktop.

It can be useful if you just need to hide something temporarily (or if you just want to troll someone). However, if you really want to secure any file, you definitely use the File encryption software.

This trick is not an official Windows feature, so it may sometimes have some bugs. Occasionally, the icon may be black or appear as a translucent outline, instead of being completely invisible. This may be related to the size of the icon. If the icon is not visible, press Ctrl and scroll until you find the right size.

If you have any trouble, just move the files in the folder to another folder, then delete the stealth folder. Or, you can try restoring the folder back to its normal state.

Make the stealth folder visible again

To make the folder visible as normal, Right click on the invisible folder and select Properties. Click the tab Customizeand then click Change Icon. This time, choose the folder’s default icon again instead of the stealth icon.

To change the name, right-click the folder and select Rename. Give the folder a different name, and then press Enter.