windows 10

I have recently switched from windows 7 to 10. I have to have encrypted work files which once unencrypted, opened, modified and re-encrypted are saved to a portable hard drive.
with windows 7 the unencrypted files could still be viewed by typing IM into the search bar at the bottom of the screen. These were then permanently deleted manually.
Would this still happen with windows 10 and if so, how do I locate the files to delete them ?
Thanks

 

The files will live on your hard drive. If they are encrypted then you will be able to see they exist (eg. 'super secret recipie.docx') using the search bar.

If you tried to open them then the app will require a password and depending on what program either fail or show gibberish without the password.

To delete them it is just like any other file, drag to recycle bin or select delete. Then empty the bin. That is NOT a secure form of deletion though, it gets complicated but you can sometimes restore those deleted files. If you really need secure deletion then there are other options.