31. Certify a Document Before You Begin  26 Secure a PDF File with Password Protection
See Also  30 Add a Digital ID Signature
By certifying a PDF file, you are ensuring that the file is set up to allow only certain functions and that you are the sole author. This ensures that your information is not changed in any way without your knowledge. After a document is certified, all post-signature changes are listed in the Signatures pane. A blue ribbon icon in the Signatures pane next to your digital signature indicates that the file is certified. Before certifying a PDF document, make sure you have completed any necessary changes first.   | 1. | Certify a PDF In the Preferences dialog box, select the Security panel and click the Advanced Preferences button. The Digital Signatures Advanced Preferences dialog box shows you the preferences available for digital signatures. KEY TERM  | eEnvelope An unencrypted PDF file that contains encrypted attachments.
| If it is not already selected, select Adobe Default Security from the Default Method for Verifying Signatures pop-up menu. Click OK . NOTE  | In Acrobat 7 eEnvelopes are unencrypted PDF files that contain encrypted attachments. This enables anyone to open and read the PDF file and even view a list of the encrypted attached files, but not open or save the files. You can use an eEnvelope to send Excel spreadsheets with sensitive financial information to your accountant. Your accountant's assistant or colleagues can open the eEnvelope, but only your accountant (to whom you've given the password) can open the spreadsheets. To create an eEnvelope, from the Document, Security menu, select Secure PDF Delivery . This launches a wizard that walks you through the process of attaching, securing, and delivering the documents. | | | 2. | Save the Certified File
In the File menu, select Save As Certified Document . This launches the Save As Certified Document dialog box. You must have a digital ID to save a document as certified. Click the OK button, which launches the Save As Certified DocumentChoose Allowable Actions dialog box.
| | 3. | Set Options From the Allowed Actions pop-up menu choose what you will allow to be done to this particular PDF document. Select from Disallow Any Changes to the Document, Only Allow Form Fill-in Actions on This Document , or Only Allow Commenting and Form Fill-in Actions on This Document . Click the Next button. The warnings are displayed for you to read. Continue to click the Next button to finish certifying the document. You can choose either Show Certification on Document or Do Not Show Certification on Document . If you select the visible certificate, you need to drag a box field onto the document showing where you want the certification to appear. TIP  | When certifying a PDF document, keep in mind both the purpose of the document and the person receiving it. When creating a PDF for the purpose of archiving a document, select Disallow Any Changes to the Document from the Allowed Actions list to ensure that no one viewing the document can make any changes. When certifying an online form, select Only Allow Form Fill-in Actions on This Document from the Allowed Actions list so viewers can enter data but not edit the form itself. | | | 4. | Finalize the Certification
Enter the password for your digital ID in the Confirm Password box in the Save As Certified Document dialog box; then click the Sign and Save button.
| | 5. | View the Results
If you chose the Show Certification on Document option, the certification shows up on the PDF document, indicated by the digital ID signature and an icon of a document with a blue ribbon attached to it. If you chose the Do Not Show Certification on Document option, Acrobat automatically saves the file and the next time the document is opened, a Document Status dialog box appears, informing the viewer that the document was certified with a digital signature.
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