PDF Watermarks

The PDF watermarking feature in the Clear Ideas App provides an additional layer of document security and personalization, ensuring that your content remains protected and easily identifiable. Watermarks help track document access, deter unauthorized sharing, and provide context about document viewers.

Supported Formats:

PDF - .pdf (application/pdf)

Enabling Watermarks

Configure watermarks from Site Settings > Watermarks:

Navigate to Site Settings > Watermarks
Enable the Enable Watermarks checkbox
Configure watermark settings (text, roles, fields)
Click Save Watermark Settings

Watermark Scope: Watermarking applies specifically to PDF documents. It is important to note that this feature only applies to PDFs that do not have existing security or encryption settings that would prevent the application of watermarks.

Important: Watermarks are applied to unencrypted PDF files. PDFs with existing security or encryption settings may not support watermarking.

Customizing Watermark Text

Users have the flexibility to customize the watermark text displayed on PDF documents.

Default Text

By default, watermark text is empty. You can set custom text such as:

"CONFIDENTIAL"
"INTERNAL USE ONLY"
"PROPRIETARY"
Your organization name
Any custom text relevant to your security needs

Setting Watermark Text

Navigate to Site Settings > Watermarks
Ensure Enable Watermarks is checked
Enter your custom text in the Watermark Text field
Click Save Watermark Settings

Text Field: The watermark text field accepts any text you want to display on watermarked PDFs. This text appears prominently on the document.

Additional Watermark Information

In addition to custom text, you can include dynamic information in watermarks:

Available Fields

Additional Items: Choose from the following dynamic fields:

Name: The viewer's display name
Email: The viewer's email address
Date: The date when the PDF was viewed/downloaded
Time: The time when the PDF was viewed/downloaded

Selecting Fields

Navigate to Site Settings > Watermarks
Click the Additional Items dropdown
Select the fields you want to include:
- Check Name to include viewer name
- Check Email to include viewer email
- Check Date to include viewing date
- Check Time to include viewing time
Click Save Watermark Settings

Multiple Fields: You can select multiple fields. All selected fields will appear in the watermark.

Role-Based Watermark Appearance

By default, watermarks do not appear on PDF documents for sites that you own. However, you can choose to enable watermarks for different user roles.

Available Roles

User Roles: Select which user roles should have watermarks applied to their downloads:

Admin: Site administrators
Editor: Users with editing permissions
Uploader: Users with upload permissions
Downloader: Users with download permissions
Viewer: Users with view-only permissions

Configuring Role-Based Watermarks

Navigate to Site Settings > Watermarks
Ensure Enable Watermarks is checked
Click the User Roles dropdown
Select the roles that should see watermarks:
- Check roles to apply watermarks
- Uncheck roles to exclude from watermarks
Click Save Watermark Settings

Role Selection: You can select multiple roles. Watermarks will be applied to PDFs downloaded by users with any of the selected roles.

Default Behavior

Site Owners: By default, watermarks do not appear on PDF documents for sites that you own. This allows site owners to download clean copies without watermarks.

Other Users: Users with selected roles will see watermarks when downloading PDFs.

How Watermarks Work

Application Process

When a user with a selected role downloads a PDF:

Role Check: System checks if the user's role is in the selected roles list
Field Collection: System collects selected dynamic fields (name, email, date, time)
Watermark Generation: Watermark is generated with custom text and selected fields
PDF Processing: Watermark is applied to the PDF document
Download: Watermarked PDF is provided to the user

Watermark Display

Watermarks appear:

Prominently: Visible across the document pages
Persistently: Cannot be easily removed
Contextually: Include relevant viewer information

Security Considerations

Document Tracking: Watermarks help track who accessed documents and when.

Deterrent: Visible watermarks deter unauthorized sharing by identifying document recipients.

Compliance: Watermarks support compliance requirements for document access tracking.

Best Practices

Clear Watermark Text

Descriptive: Use clear, descriptive watermark text that communicates the document's security level.

Consistent: Use consistent watermark text across sites for organizational standards.

Strategic Role Selection

Security Needs: Select roles based on your security requirements:

Apply to all roles for maximum security
Apply selectively to specific roles for targeted protection
Exclude site owners for administrative convenience

Field Selection

Tracking: Include Name and Email for user identification.

Timestamps: Include Date and Time for access tracking and audit purposes.

Privacy: Consider privacy implications when including email addresses in watermarks.