POST /v1/pdf/protect

Add password protection to a PDF document.

Protect PDF

POST https://api.getdocuforge.dev/v1/pdf/protect

Add password protection and permission controls to a PDF document.

Request Body

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
pdf	string	Yes	Base64-encoded PDF document
owner_password	string	Yes	Owner password (grants full access)
user_password	string	No	User password (required to open the document)
permissions	object	No	Permission flags (see below)
output	string	No	"url" (default) or "base64"

Permissions

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
printing	boolean	true	Allow printing the document
copying	boolean	false	Allow copying text and images
modifying	boolean	false	Allow modifying the document

Example

curl -X POST https://api.getdocuforge.dev/v1/pdf/protect \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer df_live_sk_..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "pdf": "<base64-encoded-pdf>",
    "owner_password": "owner-secret-123",
    "user_password": "open-me-456",
    "permissions": {
      "printing": true,
      "copying": false,
      "modifying": false
    }
  }'

Response (URL mode)

{
  "url": "https://cdn.getdocuforge.dev/gen_abc123.pdf",
  "file_size": 52400,
  "protected": true
}

Response (base64 mode)

{
  "data": "<base64-encoded-protected-pdf>",
  "file_size": 52400,
  "protected": true
}

Errors

Status	Code	Description
400	VALIDATION_ERROR	Missing owner password or PDF exceeds size limit
401	UNAUTHORIZED	Invalid or missing API key
429	RATE_LIMITED	Too many requests
500	INTERNAL_ERROR	Server error during protection