In the digital era, as business transactions increase, adding watermarks to PDFs is now crucial for branding, security and copyright safeguarding. This proliferation of technology also means there are several techniques individuals can use to watermark sensitive documents.

Read on as we explore the significance of watermarks, the top methods to add them to PDFs and tips for making changes to watermarked documents.

A watermark is a recognizable design or text that’s embedded into a digital image, document or PDF file to indicate its authenticity, source or ownership. This overlaid component is generally semi-transparent, so the document or PDF content remains visible.

Watermarking is a powerful tool for businesses and individuals to discourage plagiarism and copyright infringement, enhance credibility and trust and act as a protective measure.

Why Add a Watermark to a PDF?

Here are three key reasons why a company or individual might add a watermark to a PDF online:

1. Confidentiality: To make it clear that information is sensitive and discourage sharing with unauthorized personnel, organizations often use a classified or confidential watermark.
2. Authentication: In specific instances, a watermark image can be used to establish the legitimacy of a PDF document. Individuals, companies or even government entities might include logos or other marks to demonstrate their approval or authenticity to document recipients.
3. Branding: Many organizations integrate their logo or business name into their electronic documents to add visual appeal and function as a marketing tool for the company.

The Importance of Watermarking Today

Emerging trends, such as the adoption of hybrid and remote work, cloud migration and the increasing prevalence of online data, are greatly influencing data security. The 2022 Data Risk Report from Concentric reveals that there was a staggering 60% increase in the number of vital business documents being overshared compared to 2021.

Given the growing concerns about safeguarding sensitive information, watermarking is a progressively utilized strategy for protecting electronic documents.

Statistics from Zippia reveal that online business constitutes 29.7% in the U.S. and 18% globally, underscoring the rising awareness, among both organizations and individuals, of watermarks’ significance in preserving content integrity and protecting intellectual property.

With this in mind, discover four different ways you can add a text watermark or image watermark to a PDF page when needed:

Tips For Removing or Editing a Watermark

Because a watermarked PDF file is intended to be secure, it can be difficult to amend it later on. However, it’s far from impossible. Here are a few of the best practices for removing or editing a watermark successfully:

• Check for a watermark layer: Before trying to remove or edit a watermark, check and see if the image or text was applied as a separate layer that can be toggled on and off. If it’s an easily removable layer, then the process might be much simpler than you anticipated.
• Recreate the document: If it’s impossible to remove the watermark and you need to work off of an unmarked version, you can recreate the document from scratch by copying the text and content into a new file.
• Request the original file: Depending on the circumstance, it’s helpful to reach out to the document’s creator or source to obtain an original watermark-free version. This is generally the most straightforward way to ensure a clean document.
• Use an online watermark removal tool: If you’re working with documents online and need a reliable tool for removing or editing watermarks, you can always opt for a comprehensive PDF editing platform to support and streamline the process.

Simplify Your Watermark Adding Process

At the end of the day, a watermarked PDF is essential in the digital age for preserving content integrity and protecting intellectual property. And while there are several methods for adding watermarks to documents online, they’re not all created equal in terms of speed and simplicity.

If you or your organization has been looking for an efficient and user-friendly watermark tool, the PDF Reader from Kdan Mobile emerges as a standout solution. With PDF Reader and a subscription to Document 365, you can streamline the process of adding watermark images or text. This comprehensive platform helps you:

• Enhance the document management experience.
• Support digital workflows.
• Foster collaboration efforts.
• Elevate security standards.

With its user-friendly interface and advanced features, PDF Reader enables the quick and seamless integration of watermarks across multiple PDF files on demand.

Originally published HERE.