This seems like a simple question to find an answer for on Google but I'm having no luck, and when sites do mention anything about it, I fear that they are using "password protect" and "encrypt" interchangeably. If I compress a file using the built-in Windows XP compression capabilities, then go to File, Set Password, and set a password on that file, is that file actually being encrypted using ANY cipher (regardless of how strong), or is the password just some Windows XP function that can be easily bypassed by opening it with a different program or something?
Also, if it is being encrypted, any idea what the cipher is?
I know I could use better tools like 7-zip or something, but for the sake of argument I'm just wondering what the built-in tool is doing.
UPDATE: For anyone that needs this, the answer to my question specifically is here: https://security.stackexchange.com/a/20937