Google Drive On Android Adds Password-Protected Office File Support

Google Drive, the Internet giant's cloud storage service, recently received an app update for Android. The update was a minor one in terms of changes, bringing only some bug fixes and a single new feature: support for password-protected Microsoft Office files. The new support expands the service's usefulness for businesses and schools, making it possible to view an encrypted Office file directly within the app.

Though Office files are password-free by default, anyone can apply a password to a document as a way to keep unwelcome individuals from accessing it. Anyone with the password can view the file...assuming they're opening it in an application that supports the feature.

Though many desktop software options include support for these password-protected files, viewing them on mobile outside of the actual Office app can be problematic. Until now, Google Drive users had to download the file, then open it in the Office app or a different file reader that supported the encryption.

Thanks to this update, Android users can now open and read those encrypted Office documents directly within Google's mobile app. This cuts down on the amount of time needed to access the documents, and also eliminates the need to manually delete the downloaded copy.

This new support and bug fixes aside, Google says the Drive on Android update also brings some stability improvements.

SOURCE: Google Play