Mac OS X includes a great feature in any print dialog that allows you to print to PDF. This post will expand on this functionality to have the PDF automatically get encrypted when doing a print to PDF. Open Automator (located in /Applications) and select the “Print Plugin” template from the template chooser that appears. This will allow us to tie directly into Mac OS X’s print dialog. Next, drag and drop the following actions into the workflow (in the order they appear):
- Encrypt PDF Documents
- Move Finder Items
Now, let’s configure these actions. For the “Encrypt PDF Documents” action, click the Options button at the bottom of the action in the workflow and check the option for “Show this action when the workflow runs.” This will allow you to specify a new PDF password each time the action is run.After you have configured this new workflow, click File > Save and specify a name for the new print plugin. The save name is what will show up in the Mac OS X print dialog. I suggest using “Encrypt PDF” as the saved name. Automator will do the rest and place the plugin in the appropriate location for it to run on your Mac.To run the workflow, open a print dialog in any application. Click on the PDF button in the lower, left-hand corner of the dialog and select the name of the workflow that you just saved. Type in a password, then type it again for a confirmation. After clicking Continue, a new encrypted PDF will appear on your Desktop.via Cory Bohon at MacLife