How to password-protect a PDF and share the password safely

Payslips, contracts, bank statements, medical records or customer lists: some documents shouldn't be openable if they reach the wrong person. Adding a password to a PDF is a simple way to add that protection, as long as it's done right.

When it's worth protecting a PDF

• When you send it by email or messaging and it could be forwarded without you knowing.
• When you keep it on a USB drive, a shared computer or a cloud folder other people can access.
• When it contains other people's personal data, as in HR departments, medical offices or accounting firms.

If the document only contains data you don't want anyone to see, like your bank transactions, consider first hiding them with redaction. A password protects the whole file; redaction removes a piece of data for good.

How to add a password step by step

1. Open Protect PDF and select your file.
2. Enter the password and confirm it. Check for typos: if you get it wrong, nobody will be able to open the file.
3. Create the protected PDF and download it.
4. Open it to check that it asks for the password and that it displays correctly once you enter it.

How to choose a good password

• Use at least 10 characters, mixing letters, numbers and a symbol or two.
• Avoid easy-to-guess data: your birth date, your tax ID, the company name or “123456”.
• A short phrase works well and is easy to say out loud, for example three unrelated words plus a number.
• Don't reuse your email or bank password.

How to share the password without undoing the protection

The most common mistake is sending the PDF and the password in the same email. If someone intercepts that message or gets it by mistake, they have both. Better:

• Send the file by email and the password by text message or phone call.
• Or agree on a password in advance, in person or by phone.
• In companies, it's common to use a rule known only to the employee, although it's less secure than a unique password per document.

What a password doesn't do

• It doesn't stop someone who knows it from forwarding the document or taking a screenshot. Share the password only with people who really need to open it.
• It doesn't hide the file name. If the name is Payslip-Juan-Perez-October.pdf, that information is visible.

Frequently asked questions