Portfolio Security

Correct - the security settings on a Portfolio do not (fully) ripple down to PDFs within it. They're really only there to protect the Portfolio itself - e.g. stopping people adding or removing items or changing the interface layout. They have no effect on non-PDF assets, so you can't for example prevent printing or copying from a text or Excel file inside a Portfolio.

Example: Portfolio containing a totally unsecured PDF has the following security applied *at Portfolio level*:-

[color=blue]
Printing - not allowed
Changing - not allowed
Assembly - not allowed
Copying - not allowed
Accessible for screen reader - allowed
Extraction - not allowed
Commenting - not allowed
Form fields - not allowed
Signing - not allowed
Templates - not allowed
[/color]

Opening the content PDF document (either in preview or modal) and it will have the following security properties:-

[color=blue]
Printing - allowed
Changing - NOT allowed
Assembly - NOT allowed
Copying - allowed
Accessible for screen reader - allowed
Extraction - allowed
Commenting - NOT allowed
Form fields - allowed
Signing - NOT allowed
Templates - NOT allowed
[/color]

To enforce the same security as the Portfolio, you will have to apply the security to the individual PDFs in turn.

Thank you!

UVSAR wrote: "To enforce the same security as the Portfolio, you will have to apply the security to the individual PDFs in turn."


Following on with might be a stupid question. In order to apply security to the individual PDF's I would need to do that BEFORE adding them to the portfolio, correct? If not, I don't see an easy way to alter the individual PDFs once included in the portfolio. Am I missing something?

Many thanks,
Caroline

Nope - you can do it afterwards (but it's not possible to batch-process files inside a Portfolio, so bear that in mind if you're adding thousands of them!). The layout of menus in Acrobat 9 may not make it entirely obvious though:

- create a new Portfolio and add some files (no need to save it yet, just get the content on screen in the grid pattern).
- double-click one of the files to display it in isolation.
- you'll have the Portfolio mini-bar at the top showing you're still inside one, but don't press "Open".

Now the bit people may not realize..

- If you apply security using the typical File..Properties panel or the Portfolio toolbar "Modify.." button, it'll happen [i]on the Portfolio[/i] - BUT if you use menu..Advanced..Security it applies to the individual document. You can also right-click anywhere on the document page and choose "Document properties" to access the props panel for the individual file.

- so, apply a security setting using that menu (e.g. prevent printing).
- instantly you'll see the padlock appear on the left panel. We still haven't saved ANYTHING. Your original PDFs on disk aren't changed.
- click back to the Portfolio using the "Home" icon on the toolbar.
- check the properties of the Portfolio itself (ctrl-D) and you'll see there's still no top-level security.

Repeat as required for each file you want protected, then save the Portfolio (securing it too if you want).