. When you create a file or directory its access permissions are set to a default value. These are usually: . rw------- . gives you read and write permission for your files; no access permissions for the group or others. rwx------ . gives you read write and execute permission for your directories; no access permissions for the group or others. Access permissions for your home directory are usually set to rwx--x--x or rwxr-xr-x . Changing default access permissions .