This article explains how to corrupt a file created with Microsoft Word to make it unusable.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Using an Online Service
Step 1. Visit the website https://corrupt-a-file.net using your computer browser
It is a free web service that allows you to corrupt any type of file making it unreadable.
Step 2. Click the FROM YOUR COMPUTER button
It is located within the "Select the file to corrupt" section of the page. The computer's "File Explorer" or "Finder" window will appear.
Step 3. Select the Word document to be corrupted and click the Open button
The name of the chosen document will be displayed in the "Select the file to corrupt" section.
Step 4. Click on the FILE CORRUPT button
The file will be uploaded to the site and corrupted.
Step 5. Click the DOWNLOAD YOUR CORRUPTED FILE button
It will appear as soon as the file is ready for download.
Step 6. Name the new document and click the Save button
The corrupt document will be downloaded locally to your computer.
Step 7. Try opening the new file using Word
If you already have Microsoft Word installed on your computer, double-click the icon of the file you downloaded to see if you can open it. You will see an error message appear indicating that there is a problem with the contents of the file. Click on the button OK to continue. At this point Word will try (unsuccessfully) to automatically repair the file or recover its contents.
Method 2 of 4: Using Notepad on Windows
Step 1. Launch the Windows Notepad program
You can find it in the section Windows Accessories in the "Start" menu.
Step 2. Click on the File menu and choose the option You open.
The "File Explorer" dialog will be displayed.
Step 3. Select the All files item from the drop-down menu on the right of the "File name" field, in the lower right corner of the window
The option is displayed by default Text documents (*.txt).
Step 4. Select the document to be corrupted and click the Open button
Inside the program window, an incomprehensible set of characters, numbers and symbols will be displayed.
You can use any Word document, regardless of the content, as no one will be able to open it
Step 5. Delete a portion of the appeared text
Deleting 7-8 lines of text should be enough.
Step 6. Click on the File menu and choose the voice Save with name.
The "Save As" dialog box will appear.
Step 7. Select the All Files option from the "Save As" drop-down menu
It is located at the bottom of the window.
Step 8. Name the file and click the Save button
The new version of the Word document will be corrupt and inaccessible.
Step 9. Try opening the new file using Word
If you already have Microsoft Word installed on your computer, double-click the icon of the file you downloaded to see if you can open it. You will see an error message appear indicating that there is a problem with the contents of the file. Click on the button OK to continue. At this point Word will try (unsuccessfully) to automatically repair the file or recover its contents.
Method 3 of 4: Change the File Extension in Windows
Step 1. Make sure the file extensions are visible
By default this is information that is hidden. Follow these instructions:
- Select the Windows search bar and type the keyword options file explorer;
- Click on the app File Explorer Options appeared in the hit list;
- Click on the tab Visualization placed in the upper part of the window;
- Deselect the check button "Hide extensions for known file types" located in the "Advanced settings" section;
- Click on the button OK.
Step 2. Locate a file other than a Word or text document
The first step is to choose a file that by nature cannot be opened using Word, for example an image in JPG, GIF, PNG, etc. format or an audio file in WAV, MP3 or OGG format. To create a fake corrupt Word document, you will use this file as a starting point.
Since the file in question will get corrupted, be sure to choose one that you don't use or that isn't important to you. If you want to keep the original file, you can make a copy of it before changing its extension
Step 3. Select the file icon with the right mouse button and choose the Rename option from the context menu that will appear
The current file name will be highlighted and you will have the option to edit it.
Step 4. Replace the current extension with the new.docx extension
For example, if the name you are working on is file.jpg, you will need to replace the original extension, ".jpg", with the new extension.docx.
Step 5. Press the Enter key
A pop-up window will appear asking you to confirm your action.
Step 6. Click the Yes button
The file will be saved in ".docx" format. If you try to open the file using Microsoft Word, an error message will appear warning you that the file is corrupt.
If you want to hide the known file extensions again, open the tab Visualization of the window File Explorer Options, then select the "Hide extensions for known file types" checkbox.
Method 4 of 4: Change File Extensions on Mac
Step 1. Make sure the file extensions are visible
By default, this is information that is hidden. Follow these instructions:
-
Open a window of Finder by clicking on the icon
Macfinder2 ;
- Click on the menu Finder located in the upper left corner of the screen;
- Click on the item Preferences;
- Click on the tab Advanced (it has a gear icon);
- Select the checkbox "Show all filename extensions";
- Click on the red circular icon in the upper left corner of the window to close it.
Step 2. Locate a file other than a Word or text document
The first step is to choose a file that by nature cannot be opened using Word, for example an image in JPG, GIF, PNG, etc. format or an audio file in WAV, MP3 or OGG format. To create a fake corrupt Word document, you will use this file as a starting point.
Since the file in question will get corrupted, be sure to choose one that you don't use or that isn't important to you. If you want to keep the original file, you can make a copy of it before changing its extension
Step 3. Click on the file icon once and press the Enter key
The current file name will be highlighted and you will have the option to edit it.
Step 4. Replace the current extension with the new.docx extension
For example, if the name you are working on is file.jpg, you will need to replace the original extension, ".jpg", with the new extension.docx.
Step 5. Press the Enter key
A message will appear asking you to confirm your action.
Step 6. Click the Use.docx button
The new file will be saved with the ".docx" extension. If you try to open the file using Microsoft Word, an error message will appear warning you that the file is corrupt.
If you want to hide the file extensions again, open a Finder window, access the menu Finder, select the item Preferences, click on the tab Advanced and uncheck the "Show all filename extensions" checkbox.
Warnings
- For testing purposes, do not use a file you may need in the future, as it is very difficult to recover the contents of a corrupt document. Create a test file for testing or simply copy an existing document.
- If you want to corrupt the file as an excuse for not delivering a school assignment on time, you need to be very careful. Educational institutions know these kinds of tricks, and if you get caught, you will be awarded the worst possible grade ex officio. Before taking such a risky action, read your school's regulations carefully.
