In an era where privacy is getting harder and harder to find, an increasing number of tech fans are resorting to alternative tech tools to ensure that secret stuff stays secret. There’s been a big upturn in interest for VPN services and private email services in recent months, but what about protecting your local files from prying eyes? If you’d like to keep certain files on your computer away from prying eyes, a Mac App called Hidden File Manager may interest you.

What is it and what does it do

Main Functionality

Hidden File Manager is a Mac app developed by Phoebe Ng / HostPlugin.com. Hidden File Manager allows you to hide certain files. Files hidden by using this program are password locked and can be auto-destructed. Even Spotlight won’t be able to see your files: only you can!

Pros

• Excellent interface
• Only you can access your hidden files: a search of your system using Spotlight or Finder won’t turn them up!
• Drag and drop functionality makes completing bulk “hide” actions a breeze
• App icon lives in the menu bar and takes up very little space
• Allows you to complete a support ticket from within the app with ease

Cons

• You will need to change the default password in order to start using the app
• Some users have complained about holes in the security (being able to locked audio and video easily, for example)
• You can only set self-destruct after X numbers of failed password attempts (where X is any multiple of 5 between 5 and 25, or never)
• Would be nice to be able to drag and drop files to hide them by dragging right on to the menu bar icon

Discussion

Hidden File Manager works fairly simply. Basically, to hide your files, you click on the file icon in the status bar and select Hidden File Manager. You then use Finder to hide/lock any files that you want to keep secreted away. You just drag and drop the files into the table and change the lock/hide settings.

You can also change the password from the app’s default setting, or set up a self-destruct feature to “burn” your hidden files in the event of too many incorrect password attempts.

Overall, this app is fairly easy to use. I do wish it was slightly easier to drag files into the “hidden” area. I also wish that it was possible to set up more than one password. This would be great for a computer that has multiple users, or for people who want to be able burn the drive with a single “auto-destruct” password.

Conclusion and download link

This app worked just fine for me in testing, though it was a bit more cumbersome than I would have liked. It’s a decent enough app, and it may just suit your needs. There are, however, several other options out there that can accomplish the same basic task. Try a couple other options to see what you like best, because this app isn’t always the most user-friendly option out there.

Price: Free

Version reviewed: 1.1

Supported OS: OS X 10.7 or later

Download size: 4.3 MB

Hidden File Manager on Apple App Store