Protect PDF

Purpose

This API allows you to password protect a PDF file or overwrite the permissions of an already protected PDF file.

Quick Reference

Property	Value
Method	POST
Request URL	https://{zohoapis_domain}/pdfeditor/api/v1/pdf/protect

Body Parameters

Parameter	Value	Mandatory/Optional	Description
file	File or String	Mandatory	Upload the PDF file from your local drive or desktop. If the PDF is available via a publicly accessible web URL, you can provide the URL using the same parameter.
input_options	{ "password": "***" }	Mandatory	If the input PDF is already password protected, specify the password to unlock it.
output_settings	{ "name": "<document_name>", "encryption_algorithm": "AES128" \| "AES256" \| "RC4128", "password": "*", "restrictions": { "password": "", "permissions"*: ["document.copy", "document.print", ...] } }	Mandatory	name(optional) – Name of the output PDF after protection. encryption_algorithm(optional) – Encryption type. Supported values: AES128, AES256, RC4128. Default: AES128. password(optional) – Password to be set for the output PDF. Allowed character limit: 6 to 255. restrictions(optional) – Specify restriction settings. If restrictions is passed, both password and permissions fields are mandatory. password – Password to enable or override restricted permissions. Allowed character limit: 6 to 255. permissions – Specify the actions that need to be restricted in the PDF.

permissions

Permission Key Name	Description
document.copy	Copy content from the PDF.
document.copy.accessibility	Copy content for use with accessibility tools (e.g., screen readers).
document.fill	Fill in form fields within the PDF.
document.print	Print content from the PDF.
document.print.low_quality	Print the PDF in low quality.
document.annotate	Add comments, annotations, or markups to the PDF.
document.assemble_document	Insert, rotate, delete, or rearrange pages in the PDF.

Notes and Limits

The maximum file size allowed for the input PDF is 50 MB. It cannot be more than 150 pages.
AES256 encryption is supported only for PDF version 1.7 or above.
If the restrictions param is passed, both password and permissions fields are mandatory.
To use this API, an OAuth token should be generated with the following scopes: ZohoWriter.pdfEditor.ALL

Possible Errors

Refer to the following pages for the list of possible errors for this API:

Sample Request

Copiedcurl --location --request POST "https:///www.zohoapis.com/pdfeditor/api/v1/pdf/protect" \
  --header "Authorization: Zoho-oauthtoken xxx.yyy.zzz" \
  --form 'file=@/Users/username/Documents/Original.pdf' \
  --form 'input_options={"password": "abc123"}' \
 --form 'output_settings={"name": "protected_document.pdf", "encryption_algorithm": "AES256", "password": "user123", "restrictions": {"password": "owner123", "permissions": ["document.copy", "document.print", "document.fill"]}}'

Once the process begins, you will initially receive the 'status_url'. By invoking the 'status_url', you will be able to monitor the status of the scheduled job.

Sample Response

Copied{
	"status_check_url": "https://pdf.zoho.com/pdfeditor/api/v1/pdf/protect/job/f931a01183b33",
	"status": "inprogress"
}

Success Response

Copied{
	"download_url": "https://pdf.zoho.com/pdfeditor/api/v1/pdf/protect/download/f931a01183b33",
	"status": "success"
}