How to password protect a PDF
Follow these easy steps to create a PDF password:
- Click the Select a file button above or drag and drop a PDF into the drop zone.
- Enter a password, then retype it to confirm the password.
- Click Set password.
- Download the password-protected PDF document or sign in to share it.
Try our free password protection tool
Password protect PDF files
Add PDF password protection with the Adobe Acrobat online tool. By adding a password to your PDF file, only people with the password can view the file content.
Protect sensitive content
Adding a password helps make sure that sensitive data like birth dates or medical information is accessible only to approved people and remains unavailable to everyone else.
Restrict unauthorised access
When you password protect a PDF, you control file access. For someone to open the file, you'll need to give them the password, keeping your content private.
Choose your password strength
Adobe wants to make sure that your file is well protected. When you create a password, we’ll let you know if it is weak, medium or strong using password standards.
No software to install
Acrobat online PDF tools work in any browser, including Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome. Just drag and drop a file to get started — there’s no need to install any additional software.
Trusted PDF password security
As the inventor of the PDF file format, Adobe delivers document security you can trust. Password protect your PDFs with confidence.
Questions? We have answers.
When you protect documents with a password, people who enter the correct password can access the file or folder. A stronger security method is encryption, with common types being 128-bit key or 256-bit AES encryption. Encryption turns document content into unreadable cipher text. To decrypt the document, authorised users need a key, which is typically a password or a digital certificate.
When you use the Acrobat online tool to add password protection to a PDF file, it encrypts the file for added security. If you need more advanced PDF security, you can try Adobe Acrobat Pro for free for seven days for Mac or Windows. The seven-day free trial lets you add encryption options, encrypt PDFs with certificates or manage security settings and permissions to restrict editing, printing or copying. Acrobat Pro also lets you edit PDFs, organise PDF pages and convert PDFs to and from Microsoft Office apps, including Microsoft Word documents, PowerPoint presentations and Excel spreadsheets.
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