How to Protect a PDF File from Copying and Editing

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Keep your PDF file secure with this handy guide

Written by Darlene Antonelli, MA

Last Updated: February 27, 2024

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Encrypting with a Certificate

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Encrypting with a Password

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Tips

This wikiHow will teach you how to protect your PDF file. You can create a PDF and then protect it from editing and copying within Adobe Acrobat.

Things You Should Know

Click the Tools in Adobe Acrobat and then select Protection.
Click Encrypt and then Encrypt with Certificate. Add your name as a user to maintain access.
You can also click Encrypt with Password if you want to more easily share your PDF.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Encrypting with a Certificate

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1
Open your document in Acrobat. You can either open your file inside Adobe Acrobat by going to File > Open or you can right-click the file in your file browser and click Open with > Adobe Acrobat.
- If you don't have Adobe Acrobat, you can get a 7-day free trial https://acrobat.adobe.com/us/en/free-trial-download.html.
2
Click Tools. You'll see this towards the upper right or left corner of the software window.
- A pane will drop down.
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Another menu drops down.
This is usually the first option in the menu.
5
Click Encrypt with Certificate. If you know who you're sending the PDF to already and their email addresses, click "Encrypt with Certificate." If you're having trouble sharing your PDF with certificate encryption, try changing to encrypting with a password.
- Make sure you add your own name to the list or you'll be unable to open your PDF.
- You can also set the permissions for each individual who has access to the file if you use the certificate encryption by clicking to select their name from the list, and clicking Permissions.
Press Ctrl+S (Windows) or ⌘ Cmd+S (Mac) to save your changes.^{[1]
X
Research source}

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Encrypting with a Password

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1
Open your document in Acrobat. You can open your file within Adobe Acrobat by going to File > Open or you can right-click the file in your file browser and click Open with > Adobe Acrobat.
- If you don't have Adobe Acrobat, you can get a 7-day free trial https://acrobat.adobe.com/us/en/free-trial-download.html.
2
Click Tools. You'll see this towards the upper right or left corner of the software window.
- A pane will drop down.
Another menu drops down.
This is usually the first option in the menu.
5
Click Encrypt with Password. If you don't know who you're sending your PDF to or don't have their email addresses, click "Encrypt with Password" so anyone with the password has access to it. Encrypting with a password is more common and more widely accepted than certificates.
- If you're using either the certificate or password encryption, uncheck the box next to "Enable copying or editing of text, images, and other content" to prevent anyone from making copies of the file.
- If you choose to encrypt with a password, you can create a password that allows people to open and view your PDF, but not allow them to edit. You can also create a password for editing so they can make changes. You can also choose from the drop-downs if you want to allow printing and changes.
Press Ctrl+S (Windows) or ⌘ Cmd+S (Mac) to save your changes.^{[2]
X
Research source}

Common Questions: Using Read-Only PDFs

How do I make a PDF read only?

On Windows, right-click the PDF and select Properties. Check the box for Read-only and click OK. On Mac, select the PDF and click File. Click Get Info and set the access under the Sharing and Permissions tab.

How can you protect a PDF without a password?

If you don't want to set a password, you can set the document as Read-only. This allows someone to read the PDF without the power to edit the text or information within the document.

How do you know if a PDF is read only?

You'll know if a PDF is read-only by checking its properties. On Windows, right-click the PDF and click Properties. On Mac, select the PDF and click Get Info.