PDF documents are password protected so its contents are not easily viewed by unauthorized people. Banks statements and other sensitive documents are common candidates for password protection. This article shows you how to easily get rid of password protection in pdf files for free. Note, uploading your documents to random websites is highly discouraged as it comes with privacy concerns.
Open the pdf file that you would like to remove its password protection with Edge browser and click the print icon. You can alternatively trigger the printing screen by clicking Ctrl + P or right click anywhere and click on Print. A selection menu appears so select Save as PDF under printer section. The pdf will be saved without password requirement.
How to password protect pdf
The easiest way to password protect your pdf files is to open the pdf file using Microsoft Office Word then export the file as pdf. Select an option to Encrypt the document with a password and input a password of your choice.
Here are the steps to protect your pdf file with a password:
- Open the file with Microsoft Office Word: Right-click the pdf file to get an option to open the file with various installed applications on your PC then select Word.
- Enable editing so you can have an option to export file.
- Export the file to pdf by clicking on Create PDF/XPS.
- Click on options to have an option to add password protection.
- Enable Encrypt the document with a password and add a password to protect your pdf with password.
Save the pdf file and that’s it. You’ll need to input the password you used the next time you want to open the file.
Should you use websites to manipulate pdf documents?
Websites require you to upload the document to their servers so it can be processed, and operations done. I personally discourage this as it risks exposing your sensitive data third parties. It is impossible to know what they do with your documents once you upload them.
For this privacy concern, avoid sharing your sensitive documents with random websites that you do not trust. Do all the processing locally on your personal computer.
