How to create a private paste link with a password
Add a password to a paste so only people who know it can open the link. A guide to creating private, password-protected paste links.
A private paste link restricts access so only people who know the password can open it. This is useful for sharing sensitive information with a specific person without exposing it to anyone who stumbles across the link.
Open a new paste
Go to nullpaste.org — no account or sign-up required.
Enter your content
Type or paste the text or code you want to share privately.
Set a password
Scroll to the Password field and enter a password. NullPaste hashes it with Argon2id on the server — the plain-text password is never stored.
Create and share
Click Create paste and copy the link. Share the link and the password separately — for example, send the link in email and the password in a chat message.
Recipients enter the password to open it
Anyone who opens the link is prompted for the password. Without it, the content is not shown.
Tips for private sharing
- Send the link and password through different channels — if one channel is compromised, the paste is still protected
- Set an expiry so the paste disappears automatically after the recipient has read it
- For maximum privacy, combine a password with end-to-end encryption — the server cannot read the content even if it receives a request
- Use burn-after-read so the paste can only be opened once — after the first confirmed read it is gone, even if the link leaks afterward
Password vs encryption
Password protection controls access — only people with the password can open the paste, but the content is stored on the server in a form the server can read. End-to-end encryption goes further: the server stores only ciphertext and cannot decrypt it under any circumstances. For highly sensitive secrets, use encryption; for general-purpose private sharing, a password is usually sufficient.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I create a private paste link?
- Open NullPaste, write your paste, enter a password in the Password field, and click Create Paste. Share the link and password through separate channels — only someone with both can open the paste.
- What makes a paste private?
- A paste is private if it has a password (only people who know it can open it) or end-to-end encryption (only someone with the full URL including the key fragment can decrypt it). By default, paste links are unlisted — not indexed by search engines and unguessable — but unlisted is not secret: anyone who obtains the link can open an unprotected paste.
- Can I make an existing paste private?
- No. Privacy options — password, encryption, expiry — are set at creation and cannot be changed afterward. To add a password to existing content, create a new paste with the password set and share the new link.
- How secure is password protection compared to encryption?
- Password protection controls access — the server stores the plaintext and verifies the password on each request. End-to-end encryption is stronger: the server stores only ciphertext and has no ability to read the content, even under legal compulsion. Use encryption for secrets, use a password for general-purpose private sharing.
- Is there a stronger option than a password?
- Yes. Enable end-to-end encryption — your paste is encrypted in the browser before it reaches the server. The decryption key lives only in the URL fragment, which the browser never sends to the server. You can use both a password and encryption at the same time for maximum security.
- Can I share a private paste with multiple people?
- Yes. Share the link and password with as many recipients as you like. Each recipient will need both to open the paste. If you want the paste readable only once, use burn-after-read instead of or in addition to a password.