Protect your Simplebooklet

By default, your Simplebooklet is open — anyone with the link can read it, no account needed. That's perfect for marketing and public content, but if you're sharing client work, gated resources, paid content, or anything internal, you'll want to lock things down. The Share Tab gives you a stack of access controls you can mix and match: pause the link, require a password, verify emails, gate behind a lead form, charge a paywall, and more. This article covers what each one does, when to use it, and how to layer them.

How Default Visibility Works

Out of the box, every published Simplebooklet is Public — anyone with the link can open it, no sign-in required. It stays that way until you either change the visibility, enable an access control, or pause the link.

If you want to change that, everything below lives in the Share Tab.

How to Open the Protection Settings

1. Open your Dashboard.

2. On the Simplebooklet you want to protect, click Share.

The Share Tab opens. Link Visibility sits at the top, and the Manage column on the right holds every access control.

Quick Guide: Which Protection Should I Use?

A cheat sheet for picking the right tool:

You can stack multiple protections on the same Simplebooklet — for example, password + verified email, or lead gate + paywall.

Link Visibility (Your First Layer)

The fastest, simplest control sits at the top of the Share Tab. Set your link to:

• Public Link — Anyone with the link can open it, and search engines can index it.

• Link Only — Only people you give the link to can open it. Search engines won't index it. A good lightweight option for private shares.

• Paused — The link is unpublished and inaccessible. Anyone who tries to open it sees a "this booklet is paused" message. Useful while you're editing or if you want to take a booklet offline temporarily.

If you want to instantly hide your Simplebooklet from the world, switching to Paused is the one-click answer.

Require Password

Make readers enter a password before they can open your Simplebooklet. In the Manage column, toggle Require Password on, then click the gear to configure.

You can:

• Set multiple passwords — Hand out different passwords to different groups so you can track who's accessing what.

• Add usernames — Pair each password with a username for an extra identity layer.

• Track usage — See how many times each password has been used.

Best for: client decks, internal docs, controlled distribution where you want a low-friction lock.

Require Verified Email

Instead of a shared password, make readers verify their email before opening your Simplebooklet. They enter their email, get a verification link, and use it to access. Toggle Require Verified Email on in the Manage column and click the gear to configure.

You can:

• Allow any valid email — Anyone can verify and access.

• Approve specific email addresses — Only the people on your list get in.

• Approve specific domains — Restrict to anyone with a @yourcompany.com email.

• View access reports — See exactly who opened your Simplebooklet and when.

Best for: B2B sharing, internal company content, anything where you need identity-level access and reporting.

Lead Gate

Require readers to fill out a short form (email, name, phone, etc.) before they can access your content. Toggle Lead Gate on in the Manage column and click the gear to configure the form fields and message.

Best for: gated marketing content, lead-generation campaigns, eBooks, white papers, and anything where the contact info is the goal.

Paywall

Charge readers to unlock your Simplebooklet. Toggle Paywall on in the Manage column and click the gear to set:

• Price — What you charge for access.

• Where the paywall appears — Cover only, after a few preview pages, or on a specific page.

• Preview — Show a sample so readers know what they're paying for.

• Personal message — Add a custom note that appears alongside the paywall.

Best for: paid reports, premium content, digital products, anything where the booklet itself is what you're selling.

Lock To Webpage

Restrict your Simplebooklet so it only opens when embedded on specific URLs you've approved. If someone tries to open the direct link or embeds it on an unapproved site, they're blocked. Toggle Lock To Webpage on in the Manage column and click the gear to add your approved URLs.

Best for: content meant to live exclusively inside your own website, paid embedded content, exclusive partner placements.

Adult Content

Add a content warning to your Simplebooklet so readers have to confirm they want to view mature material before they can access it. Toggle Adult Content on in the Manage column.

Best for: any content that requires an age or mature-content gate.

Require Cookie Consent

Show a cookie consent notice readers must accept before viewing your Simplebooklet. Toggle Require Cookie Consent on in the Manage column.

Best for: meeting GDPR and similar privacy compliance requirements.

Related Controls (Design Tab)

A couple of related protections live in the Design Tab rather than the Share Tab:

• Disable Download — Prevent readers from downloading the original PDF or installing the Simplebooklet as a web app. Find it in Design Tab → Share and toggle off Download and Install.

• Basic Copy Protection — Discourage right-click and casual text copying. Find it in Design Tab → Settings. No tool can fully prevent copying online, but this stops the easy stuff.

Password Protect a Collection

If you're sharing multiple Simplebooklets together inside a Collection, you can protect the whole Collection with a single passcode rather than locking each booklet individually. This is a separate workflow from booklet-level password protection — see Password Protect a Collection for the full steps.

Stacking Protections

You're not limited to one. Common combinations:

• Password + Verified Email — Two-factor-ish access control for sensitive client work.

• Lead Gate + Paywall — Capture the lead, then ask them to pay (or vice versa).

• Lock To Webpage + Verified Email — Embed on your members-only site, restrict to verified addresses.

Toggle on whatever you need — they all work together.

What's next?

Now that you know your protection options:

• Get to know the Share Tab — A full tour of the Share Tab including all the Manage settings.

• How to share your Simplebooklet — A walkthrough of every way to send your booklet out into the world once it's protected.

• Password Protect Your Simplebooklet — A deeper how-to on setting up password protection.

• Require Verified Emails for Your Simplebooklet — A deeper how-to on email verification.

Updated on: 28/04/2026