PDF locked

I have filled up the form of 842 Application form and save file on my Macbook Air, and when I tried to open the filed it got locked and need password to open the file, however since I am not the person who lock the file I do not know the password and hence unable to open it. I have tried to open with icloud password and unlock it from get info, but the pdf file itself was locked, please help me how to open it.

Posted on Mar 15, 2024 10:10 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Mar 15, 2024 6:20 PM

If you were filling in a PDF form and the PDF then became locked, then this a bug in the Preview app in macOS 14.x Sonoma. Many of these PDFs with fillable forms are locked by the creator so they cannot be edited beyond filling in the form. Due to the Preview bug in Sonoma, whenever a PDF form is edited, Preview ends up extending the existing password protection to the entire PDF.


The only way to access these forms is by downloading the original PDF file again, but this time when you fill in the PDF form you will need to use a third party app instead. Once Preview has locked the PDF, there is nothing you can do about it.


There are multiple threads on this forum about this issue.


You can provide Apple with product feedback here:

Feedback - macOS - Apple


2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Mar 15, 2024 6:20 PM in response to remifanai

If you were filling in a PDF form and the PDF then became locked, then this a bug in the Preview app in macOS 14.x Sonoma. Many of these PDFs with fillable forms are locked by the creator so they cannot be edited beyond filling in the form. Due to the Preview bug in Sonoma, whenever a PDF form is edited, Preview ends up extending the existing password protection to the entire PDF.


The only way to access these forms is by downloading the original PDF file again, but this time when you fill in the PDF form you will need to use a third party app instead. Once Preview has locked the PDF, there is nothing you can do about it.


There are multiple threads on this forum about this issue.


You can provide Apple with product feedback here:

Feedback - macOS - Apple


This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

PDF locked

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