Preview (El Capitan): Password-protect a PDF

Password-protect a PDF
Password-protect a PDF in Preview

You can give a PDF a password that everyone must enter to open the file. The password is used to encrypt the file.

  1. Open the PDF you want to password-protect.

  2. Choose File > Export, then select Encrypt.

  3. Type a password, then retype it to verify the password.

Last Modified: Sep 30, 2015
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