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emailing transcripts by pdf

mcg4595
Registered: Feb 26 2010
Posts: 4

If you email a transcript to an attorney and the transcript has been turned into a pdf document, is it secure over the Internet?

rbogie
Registered: Apr 28 2008
Posts: 432
that's a very broad question. it depends on how much security you want. generally if the file is posted on the internet, it can be obtained by anyone with the URL (or even by a google search). any file you email as an attachment will have as much 'security' as any other file attachment. much depends on who has access to the recipient's email account and what the recipient does with the file. the creator of a PDF (if she has adobe acrobat or a similar program) can add 'security' to a file and, for example, block the opening of a file (or certain functions thereof) with a password. generally, such 'security' is not very secure, if someone has access to the file and is determined to view it. software to crack PDF file security is readily available.
mcg4595
Registered: Feb 26 2010
Posts: 4
Thank you for your response. I mail them as an attachment, so I am now wondering actually how "secure" they really are. When it says that they're encrypted I guess I don't understand what that means.

Again, thank you for your answer and I will look further into this.
rbogie
Registered: Apr 28 2008
Posts: 432
if the file comes to you as an unsecured pdf and you do not have the acrobat app (AA comes with a feature with which you can impose security on a file; i.e., you have access only to the Reader application and therefore, can not impose security on a file), then you might consider using an archiving utility like WinZip. WinZip has an encription / password feature.