Document encryption not working

[sophie-mariec63194653]

Hi there,

When we create a document which holds personal information and needs to be sent to a third party for signature, we have been encrypting it by setting a password. However the password doesn't seem to be working. In settings it says that the document is password protected but at no stage when you open or sign the document does it require a password. This is a real concern with GDPR, if anyone knows why this is please can you help?

Sometimes the password kicks in once the third party has signed the document, but we need to protect the document when it is sent to the third party in case we get compromised.

Thanks.

[Guest]

Hi

Which application are you using, I'd imagine it's Adobe Acrobat, if that is the case we can move it to the appropriate forum

[finis15C3]

Yep it's Acrobat. 

[try67]

There are two kinds of passwords you can apply to a PDF: One for opening it and one for editing it. It sounds like you only used the latter.

By the way, you should know that many PDF viewers don't respect these security policies, unfortunately, and will open a password-protected file even without the password...

[Abambo · Accepted solution]

Discussion successfully moved from Adobe Creative Cloud to Acrobat General Troubleshooting

Hi Sophie-Marie,

I suspect you want to use Acrobat. You can protect different stages of a document with passwords.

After signing a document, the document cannot be modified anymore without invalidating the signature. A signature is not meant to protect a document from opening.

[finis15C3]

I'm having the same problem but I am unable to access this Password Security - Settings page. 

From the Secure tab, the drop down menu with Encrypt with Password (and Certificate) are grayed out. Same if I start at Advanced. 

[Test Screen Name]

Finis, maybe you are using the free Acrobat Reader.