Managing access and sharing PDF files securely with Acrobat

Learn to create secure, shareable PDF links by setting access permissions.

When you share a link to your PDF file with others, you can use built-in presets like public, private, and organization to define access permissions. If a recipient doesn't have access, they can request it from you.

  • Private links Only invited collaborators can access the shared PDF file link.
  • Organization links Anyone within the organization can access the shared PDF file link.
  • Public links Anyone on the internet can access the shared PDF file link. This option is helpful for sharing with a large audience and does not require the recipients to sign-in. Public links should not be used to share confidential or sensitive information.
  • Request access If a recipient wants to access a privately shared document, they can request access. Upon receiving new requests, the document owner gets notified and can decide to either grant or deny access, maintaining complete control over the document's accessibility.
Note:

Enterprise admins can manage user access using the Adobe Admin Console. These settings will remain unaffected regardless of any access controls you've set up in Acrobat.

Steps to create a private, public, or organization link

Note:

Currently, the capability is being rolled out as a limited release to a select set of users in the new Acrobat experience with Adobe cloud storage.

  1. Open a PDF you want to share in Acrobat, then select Share in the upper-right corner.

  2. In the Share dialog, select Link setting.

    Share settings

  3. In the Share settings window, do one of the following:

    • To create a public link to the PDF file, choose Anyone on the internet with the link > Apply.
    • To share the PDF file with employees of your organization, choose People <in organization> with the link Apply.
    • To create private links for selected audiences, select Invited people onlyselect Nextand enter the recipients' names or email addresses.
    Note:

    By default, the People can comment switch is turned on. To share the file only for viewing, select the switch to turn it off. 

  4. To share the file, you can:

    • Use the Invite workflow to enter the recipients' email addresses that you want to share.
    • Choose Microsoft® Outlook, Gmail, Microsoft® Teams, or WhatsApp for sharing the link with the recipients.
    • Send a link or attach the file in an email.
    Note:

    You can use @mention to invite users to public files and those within your organization for organization-shared links. However, @mention isn't available for invitations to privately shared files.

  5. Acrobat shows a confirmation message once the invitation is sent.

Request access to the shared file

When you open a secured shared link, Acrobat prompts you to log in with your Adobe ID. If you don't have access to the shared link, Acrobat displays an error mentioning the same. You can request access or sign in with a different email ID.

Request access to the shared file

Manage access to the shared file

As the PDF file owner, you'll receive both an email and an Acrobat notification when someone requests access to the shared file. Select Manage Access in the email received or the app notification.

Email notification to manage access
Email notification to manage access

In-app notification to manage access
In-app notification to manage access

Select Accept or Decline the requested access.

Accept or Decline the access request

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