Making PDFs More Secure in LibreOffice Writer
LO Writer – PDF Security
© Lead Image © Fotoflash, Fotolia.com
Depending on your needs, LibreOffice Writer offers varying degrees of security for PDFs.
PDFs date from a less security-conscious era than our own. However, over the years, the PDF format has added security features. Today, if you need security, you have two choices: passwords and permissions for casual security of digital certificates or GNU Privacy Guard (GPG) keys for serious encryption. Both are available from tabs on LibreOffice's PDF Options window when exporting to PDF.
Passwords and Permissions
PDFs have their own system of passwords and permissions, which are available from File | Export As | Export As PDF… | PDF Options | Security (Figure 1). To set them up, begin by entering a password to open the exported file, and a second one to alter the permissions (in other words, how the files can be used). After the second password is entered, three kinds of permissions are available: Printing, Changes, and Contents. Together, options can be as strict as allowing a user only to view the file, as loose as allowing any user to alter the file at will, or something in-between.
Figure 1: The Security tab in the PDF Options window offers a casual grade of security with a variety of options.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 Drops bcachefs
After a clash over some late fixes and disagreements between bcachefs's lead developer and Linus Torvalds, bachefs is out.
-
ONLYOFFICE v9 Embraces AI
Like nearly all office suites on the market (except LibreOffice), ONLYOFFICE has decided to go the AI route.
-
Two Local Privilege Escalation Flaws Discovered in Linux
Qualys researchers have discovered two local privilege escalation vulnerabilities that allow hackers to gain root privileges on major Linux distributions.
-
New TUXEDO InfinityBook Pro Powered by AMD Ryzen AI 300
The TUXEDO InfinityBook Pro 14 Gen10 offers serious power that is ready for your business, development, or entertainment needs.
-
Danish Ministry of Digital Affairs Transitions to Linux
Another major organization has decided to kick Microsoft Windows and Office to the curb in favor of Linux.
-
Linux Mint 20 Reaches EOL
With Linux Mint 20 at its end of life, the time has arrived to upgrade to Linux Mint 22.
-
TuxCare Announces Support for AlmaLinux 9.2
Thanks to TuxCare, AlmaLinux 9.2 (and soon version 9.6) now enjoys years of ongoing patching and compliance.
-
Go-Based Botnet Attacking IoT Devices
Using an SSH credential brute-force attack, the Go-based PumaBot is exploiting IoT devices everywhere.
-
Plasma 6.5 Promises Better Memory Optimization
With the stable Plasma 6.4 on the horizon, KDE has a few new tricks up its sleeve for Plasma 6.5.
-
KaOS 2025.05 Officially Qt5 Free
If you're a fan of independent Linux distributions, the team behind KaOS is proud to announce the latest iteration that includes kernel 6.14 and KDE's Plasma 6.3.5.