This piece of software is designed for those of you with a tendency to keep a close eye on computer security since it allows you to block access to certain software programs that you have installed on your Windows OS, be it XP or Vista. The thing is that if you have XP Pro, Vista Business or Vista Ultimate, you could put your programming skills to the test and attain the same goal by using secpol.msc. But I am sure many of you will appreciate a tool that is effective and very simple to use.

“Empathy is a special utility allowing you to password-protect any executable file. Empathy can modify an EXE file so that it will require a password to run. Only a person knowing the password will be allowed to run the protected program. Protected files stay protected if you copy them to another location or even to another computer, no matter which operating system do they use,” says Michal Strehovsky, the one who developed this software application.

Here are some other bits and pieces that you need to know about Michal Strehovsky password protection software: it will run on any operating system, as long as it is Windows (Windows NT 3.51, Windows NT 4, Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows Me, Windows XP, Windows Vista); the software is portable (there is just one .exe file that you can put onto a flash device or any other portable media device and take with you anywhere you want to go); the software is not free, it is postcardware. What this means is that in the free version the password is restricted to one character, which is enough to deter your children or your grandma, but it is not enough for a brute force attack. If you take the time to send Michal Strehovsky a postcard, he will provide you with an unlock code so that you will get access to the software’s full functionality.

If you would like to get Empathy, a download location is available here.