Protect PDF

About Protect PDF

When a document contains personal or confidential information and has to travel through email or shared drives, an open password is the right protection. This tool encrypts your PDF so anyone opening it is asked for the password first - a standard PDF feature that works in every reader.

How Protect PDF works

1. Upload the PDF.
2. Choose a strong password.
3. Click Protect and download the encrypted file.
4. Share the password separately from the file - never in the same email body.

Features

• Adds a genuine open password with PDF encryption
• Works in every standard PDF reader - no special software for recipients
• Original stays on the server temporarily; the protected file is a new download
• Reversible for owners via Unlock PDF

Tips for best results

• Agree the password verbally or by a separate channel - a password in the same email as the file protects nothing.
• Keep the unprotected original somewhere safe; if the password is lost, the protected copy cannot be recovered.
• Protection and a watermark do different jobs - use both when a document is confidential and a draft.

FAQ

What makes a good PDF password?

At least 10 characters mixing letters, numbers and symbols - and not a password you use anywhere else.

How should I share the password?

Through a different channel than the file - verbally, or in a separate message. A password sent in the same email as the PDF protects nothing.

I forgot the password - can you recover it?

No. An open password encrypts the document; there is no backdoor. Keep a copy of the unprotected original or store the password safely.