Protect a PDF with a password
Lock a PDF so it opens only with your password.
- 1PDF fileSelect the PDF you want to lock.
- 2Set a passwordType it twice; no one can open the PDF without it.
- 3ProtectLock the PDF and download it.
Minda Files adds a password to a PDF in your browser: type the password, turn on Printing only if the PDF should not be copied or changed, and press Protect PDF. The PDF is locked with AES-256 encryption and opens only with that password. Nothing is uploaded, and it is free with no account.
How to password protect a PDF
- Drop a PDF on the page, or press Choose a file.
- Type the password twice, and turn on Printing only if you want.
- Press Protect PDF, then download the locked PDF.
- Encryption AES-256, the strongest lock a PDF has; current PDF readers open it with the password.
- Printing only it prints, but copying its text and changing it need an owner password that Minda Files makes at random and keeps nowhere.
- Your password is not kept: without it nobody can open the PDF, Minda included.
Questions
How do I put a password on a PDF for free?
Open Protect PDF in Minda Files, drop the PDF, type the password and press Protect PDF. It runs in your browser with no account, and the file is not uploaded.
What if I forget the password?
The PDF cannot be opened without it, because Minda Files does not keep it. Keep the password somewhere safe, or keep a copy without one.
Can I stop people copying or editing my PDF?
Turn on Printing only: the PDF opens with the password and prints, and readers that respect a PDF’s permissions, like Adobe Acrobat, block copying and changes.
Is Minda Files free?
Yes. Every tool and the editor are free, with no account needed. Signed out, files open up to 10 MB; signed in on the free plan, up to 50 MB; the Files plan and Pro open files up to 256 MB.
Are my files uploaded?
No. The tools and the editor run online in your browser; your file is not sent to a server. Only Ask AI sends what you ask, and the text of the file it needs, to Minda AI; PDF to PowerPoint sends a picture page or a picture only when you turn on Read picture pages, and Translate PDF the words it translates.
Do I need to install anything?
No. Minda Files works in your web browser: open the page, drop a file and it opens there.
Related tools
- Unlock PDF Take the password off a PDF you can open.
- Redact PDF Black out what nobody else should read, for good.
- Watermark Write a word or a line across every page of a PDF.
Last updated