Microsoft has axed its Private Folder personal encryption tool only weeks after launching the offering.

Microsoft Private Folder 1.0 was unveiled on 6 July, and was available only to users participating in verification of their Windows XP install via the controversial Windows Genuine Advantage system.

The tool could be used to create a secure, encrypted 'My Documents' folder to which only the local end user would have access.

But the company has removed the Private Folder software from its downloads section over the past few days following an apparent torrent of concern from network administrators.

Reports suggested that network administrators, particularly those in small businesses, were worried that the tool would allow users to encrypt data on their machines in a format that would make it irrecoverable by administrators.

It has been noted that a number of third-party products also allow this and the only way to prevent such an occurrence is to use policies to prevent the installation of applications on the desktop.

Although Private Folder has officially been removed from the Microsoft site, the location of the actual download file appears only to have been obfuscated.

A quick Google search of the Microsoft.com site offers a direct link to the Private Folder 1.0 MSI installer file.