Is there a way to lock down PDF textbooks so that students can view them only in browsers (Chrome/FireFox/Safari) and cannot download them to their computers? I tried all the PDF xblocks but no luck. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I wouldn’t expect so, in order for a file to be viewed (even in the browser) it must still be downloaded before it can be opened/rendered. There might be some kind of group policy or other registry restriction that can be applied on the user’s computers, but this is a per-workstation policy, not a global tutor configuration. Unless I’ve misunderstood your question, I don’t think this is likely to be an option.
Hey, I know right? Even my client knows this very well but they still insist on making PDFs undownloadable. I think I’ve figured out a solution to this:
Custom static website rendering a PDF document in an iframe on an OpenEdx course page (Using Iframe Tool feature). Not ideal but it should at least make “stealing” a PDF book a lot more tedious.
Just so they’re aware, this might raise accessibility barriers (depending on implementation).
One approach is to use secure PDF viewers that operate within the browser and offer download restrictions. These tools can embed PDFs in a way that disables the download, print, and copy functions. However, it’s important to note that determined users might still find ways to capture the content.​
Using SysTools PDF Locker:
To enhance the security of your PDF textbooks, consider using SysTools PDF Locker. This tool allows you to apply various restrictions to your PDF files, such as:​
- Disabling printing
- Restricting copying of content
- Preventing editing
- Setting passwords for opening and modifying the PDF​
By applying these restrictions, you can control how your PDFs are accessed and used. After securing your PDFs with SysTools PDF Lock Tool, you can embed them into your LMS or website using secure PDF viewers that respect these restrictions.