In addition to allowing the reuse of the same security settings, policies stored on Adobe LiveCycle Policy Server have the added benefit of letting you expire and revoke documents (no matter how many copies were created or distributed), and maintain accountability by auditing users who open protected documents.

Security policies

A.

Policies are stored on server.

B.

Policies are applied to PDF.

C.

Users can open, edit, and print document only if permitted by policy.

The process of using server-based security policies involves four main stages:

Configure the policy server

The system administrator of your company or group usually configures Adobe LiveCycle Policy Server, manages accounts, and sets up organizational policies. For more information on configuring the policy server, see the Adobe website.

Publish a document with a security policy

An author creates a PDF and applies a policy stored on Adobe LiveCycle Policy Server to the PDF. The policy server generates a license and unique encryption key for the PDF. Acrobat embeds the license in the PDF and encrypts it using the encryption key. The author or administrator can use this license to track and audit the PDF.

View a document with a policy applied

When users try to open the secure PDF in Acrobat 8.0 (or Reader 8.0), they must authenticate their identities. If the user is granted access to the PDF, the PDF is decrypted and opens with whatever permissions are specified in the policy.

Administer events and modifying access

By logging in to an Adobe LiveCycle Policy Server account, the author or administrator can track events and change access to policy-secured PDFs. Administrators can view all PDF and system events, modify configuration settings, and change access to policy-secured PDFs. Users may be required to check in the PDF periodically to continue to have access to it.