Encrypt USB drive in Monterey

Do you need to use this on other (non-Mac) computers?

If only on Mac's, you can encrypt the drive using Disk utility. You must erase the drive and use GUID Partition Map and APFS (encrypted) format.

FileVault and Encryption are intertwined, but not the same thing. FileVault is the magic that allows you to decrypt the drive and login using the same credentials from one login screen. When you enable FileVault on your startup drive, it encrypts and creates the single sign-in experience.

If you Encrypt a drive using Finder or Disk Utility, it is the same encryption that happens when you enable FileVault, but there is no accounts you need to log into on the drive. It just has a password to allow read/write.

HFS Journaled is older drive format.

If using the Stick Drive with Apple Computer running High Sierra macOS 10.13 and older stay, with HFS Journaled.

If using with Apple Computer running Mojave and above ONLY - APFS is understand and can be used.

Thanks for the reply. Would you advise this approach over APFS ?

You can’t encrypt any other format in Big Sur or later. If you encrypt, it will be APFS. CoreStorage, which was used to encrypt HFS+, does not exist in Big Sur or Monterey. If you need it to work with a Mac on older versions, you would need to encrypt it on that older Mac. Big Sur and Monterey could still use it, just not create it.

A USB stick usually comes with a master boot record partition scheme and FAT32 format. By default, Disk Utility hides that info and only presents the mountable volumes. If you try to erase a volume, it will only allow the choices compatible with the partition scheme.

You can “Show all Devices” which then allows you to select the drive device and change the partition map to GUID which is required to encrypt.

Apple tries to hide the gory details, but that limits what you can do unless you know how to show the details.

If necessary also:

Encrypt USB drive

Protect your Mac information with encryption

https://www.reddit.com/r/MacOS/comments/rk1t0v/macos_monterey_cannot_format_externl_usb_disk_in/

Format the USB Stick as HFS Journaled with GUID Partition Map.

With h=the USB Drive mounted and Appearing on Desktop. Right Click the USB Stick and a secondary menu will appear and choose " encrypt "

A third method is to create an encrypted disk image with Disk Utility, put the files into it and add it to the unencrypted external stick drive.

Firstly, there are two separate Contributors ( one is @ lllaass ) and another contributor ( P. Phillips - me ) and both are offering to different methods to Encrypt the External Stick drive.