MobileMe: How to password-protect shared files in your iDisk

Public folder

One way to share protected files is to apply a password to the Public folder of your iDisk and upload the files that you wish to share to that folder. Don't use your MobileMe account password; choose a new one to use for the Public folder only. For information about connecting directly to a Public folder, see this article.

You can change your Public folder options in the iDisk tab of the MobileMe preferences. If you have a password set on your Public folder, anyone who tries to connect to it must enter your Public folder password in order to see the contents.

To set the password on your Public folder, follow these steps:

Web Browser

1. Go to www.me.com and log in with your MobileMe membername and password.
2. Click iDisk icon.
3. Click the gear icon at the top center of the screen:
   
   

   

4. Choose Preferences.
5. Select "Password-protect your public folder."
6. Click "Change Password" and set your Public folder password.
7. Click "Save."

Mac OS X

1. From the Apple () menu, choose System Preferences.
2. Click MobileMe.
3. Click the iDisk tab.
4. Enable the option to "Password-protect your public folder" and then set your Public folder password.

Windows 

1. Click the Start menu and choose Control Panel.
2. Open MobileMe.
3. Click the iDisk tab.
4. Select the "Password-protect your public folder" checkbox and then set your Public folder password.

Note: If you do not see MobileMe in the Control Panel, you will need to make sure that you have installed the MobileMe Control Panel for Windows and the latest version of iTunes on your computer. See this article for more information.
 

Gallery

Learn more about protecting Gallery album contents here.
 

iWeb Site

You can provide restricted access to files if you have an iWeb site with links to the iDisk files that you wish to share. iWeb includes the ability to set a username and password on sites, and you can use a different username and password on each iWeb site that you create. If you password-protect an iWeb site, anyone who visits that site will be prompted to log in before the site will display in their web browser.

Passwords everywhere

The two methods of protecting your information are not related to each other. This means any passwords you choose to use, for either method, do not have to be the same (although you can choose to make them identical, if you prefer). And of course, your "master" MobileMe password for all MobileMe services is not related to either of these additional password options. To protect the security of your account, you should make sure that the passwords you choose are unique and unrelated to your MobileMe password.