Protect Thunderbird with a password - how it works

You can protect your emails and passwords in Thunderbird with a password. Depending on whether you want to save the entire program or just limit access to the saved passwords, you have to proceed differently. We show you both variants and reveal what you should pay attention to.

Protect Thunderbird with a master password

In Mozilla Thunderbird you can save the usernames and passwords that you use to access your email accounts. This data can also be secured with a master password:

1. Start Thunderbird and click on "Tools" in the menu bar.
2. Here you decide on the entry "Settings".
3. Under "Security" you switch to the "Passwords" tab.
4. Place a checkmark next to "Use master password" and enter your desired password twice in the dialog box.
5. Save the data with "OK". From now on, Thunderbird will always request the master password as soon as you want to access the stored data.

All-round protection: secure Thunderbird with a start password

Although the master password protects well, in principle anyone who has already downloaded and saved e-mail can read it on their PC. If you want to set up a password query when starting Thunderbird, you have to use an addon.

1. To do this, download the free StartupMaster extension.
2. Then start Thunderbird and click on "Addons Manager" under "Tools".
3. From the options menu next to the search field, select "Install add-on from file" and locate the downloaded XPI file on your hard drive.
4. Thunderbird installs the addon automatically. You then have to create a master password. It is the same password as in the first paragraph.
5. If you confirm your password with "OK", the addon is active. Once you restart Thunderbird, you will need to enter the password.