One of the reasons one would password protect PDF files is to control who can alter the document and who can access it. You should ask yourself whether using passwords is a safe method of protecting PDF files against unwarranted use.
PDFs are used to present documents in electronic forms free of hardware, operating system, and the software they will be viewed on.
Reasons For Locking PDF Files
People prefer to lock their PDF files for several reasons, which include:
Digital Signatures
The addition of a digital signature will mean that you have personally locked the document, and the document can’t be edited. This could come in handy when it comes to contracts where the document shouldn’t be modified after the approval of the current version.
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Copyright Protection
One might decide to lock their PDFs because of infringement purposes. Locking the PDF will prevent unwarranted persons from printing or copying the document.
Limiting Access
Locking the document prevents unwarranted people from reading and opening the document. If the document has confidential information, then adding a password to the PDF will help protect confidentiality.
Content Integrity
Locking the PDF will ensure that the integrity of your document is protected. Locking the document will also prevent anyone from further editing your document once you have made the final edits.
Reasons You Should Not Password Protect PDF Files
It would be best if you didn’t password protect PDF files for several reasons that include:
Easy to Steal
Since humans use passwords, there is only too much that one can do to keep them protected. A more robust password would mean that one has to keep a copy on their computers to copy and paste them to use them efficiently.
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Documents Can Be Used Offline
Most PDF documents can be used offline, meaning it is hard to track how many people who have the password have been given or had the password stolen.
Easy To Share
The password can easily be shared with anyone since they are sent in a readable form. The passwords can easily be forwarded and copied to anyone at any time.
Ease of Changing Document Permissions
One can easily change the document permissions, which would eventually mean that the PDF isn’t protected.
Difficulty In Setting Up Strong Passwords
At any one time, you always have too many passwords to remember, and the security offered in case of any mishap provides a point of failure in case something goes wrong. Strong passwords are difficult to use and set up for most people, and most people can’t relate to them.
Adobe Acrobat allows you to edit PDFs fast, and you can also add comments from anywhere.