{"id":286,"date":"2018-09-11T12:58:03","date_gmt":"2018-09-11T12:58:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/docs\/faqs\/technical\/how-do-i-protect-my-course-files-and-downloads\/"},"modified":"2025-06-13T13:01:23","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T17:01:23","password":"","slug":"protect-files-downloads","status":"publish","type":"docs","link":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/kb\/resources\/user-guides\/protect-files-downloads\/","title":{"rendered":"How do I protect my course files &#038; downloads?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>To protect your course content in LearnDash, it&#8217;s essential to leverage the right tools and settings to ensure that only authorized users can access your materials. Here&#8217;s a refined guide that focuses on effective content protection:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-1-use-the-learndash-integrity-add-on\">1. <strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Use the LearnDash Integrity Add-On<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.learndash.com\/ld-add-ons\/learndash-integrity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Integrity Add-On<\/a> offers several features designed to enhance content protection:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list ak-ul\">\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"1502\"><strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Hotlink Protection<\/strong>: Prevents unauthorized users from accessing your course files by blocking direct links<\/p><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"1502\"><strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\" style=\"font-size: revert;\">Content Copy Prevention<\/strong><span style=\"font-size: revert;\">: Disables right-click and text selection to minimize the risk of content copying.<\/span><\/p><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>To set this up:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list ak-ol\">\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"1740\">Install and activate the Integrity Add-On via <strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">LearnDash LMS > Add-Ons<\/strong>.<\/p><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"1814\">Configure the settings according to your protection needs.<\/p><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-2-host-videos-on-a-secure-platform\">2. <strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Host Videos on a Secure Platform<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>When using videos in your course, consider hosting them on Vimeo, which offers robust security features:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list ak-ul\">\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"2021\"><strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Domain-Level Privacy<\/strong>: Restrict video playback to your domain.<\/p><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Set up your videos on Vimeo and embed them into your LearnDash courses using the video URL. Please note that these special privacy settings are not available on the free Vimeo plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-3-control-access-to-learning-materials\">3. <strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Control Access to Learning Materials<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>For downloadable content like PDFs or other resources:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list ak-ul\">\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"2278\"><strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Conditionally Display Content with Shortcodes<\/strong>: Use the <code class=\"code css-1o5d2cw\" data-renderer-mark=\"true\"><\/code><\/p><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<p>[student]<\/code> shortcode to ensure that only enrolled users can view or download the materials.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"ak-ul\" data-indent-level=\"2\">\n<li>\n<p data-renderer-start-pos=\"2427\">Example: <code class=\"code css-1o5d2cw\" data-renderer-mark=\"true\">[student]Your download link here[\/student]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For more information, refer to the LearnDash Shortcodes &amp; Blocks documentation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-4-restrict-course-display-and-content\">4. <strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Restrict Course Display and Content<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Make sure your course content is only visible to enrolled users:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list ak-ol\">\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"2673\"><strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Set the Course Access Mode<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"2704\">Go to <strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">LearnDash LMS > Courses<\/strong>.<\/p><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"2738\">Edit the course and select the appropriate access mode (e.g., Buy Now, Recurring, or Closed) to restrict access.<\/p><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"280\" src=\"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/course-access-800x280.jpg\" alt=\"Course Access Mode\" class=\"wp-image-10065\" srcset=\"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/course-access-800x280.jpg 800w, https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/course-access-400x140.jpg 400w, https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/course-access-768x268.jpg 768w, https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/course-access-1536x537.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/course-access-360x126.jpg 360w, https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/course-access.jpg 1765w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For detailed configuration, see the <a class=\"css-1rn59kg\" title=\"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/docs\/core\/courses\/course-display\/\" href=\"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/docs\/core\/courses\/course-display\/\" data-testid=\"link-with-safety\" data-renderer-mark=\"true\">LearnDash Course Display &amp; Content<\/a> Settings documentation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-5-leverage-membership-plugins-optional\">5. <strong data-renderer-mark=\"true\">Leverage Membership Plugins (Optional)<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>For advanced content protection, consider integrating with a membership plugin like MemberPress or Restrict Content Pro:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list ak-ul\">\n<li><p data-renderer-start-pos=\"3119\">These plugins allow you to create membership levels and assign access to LearnDash courses based on the user's membership status.<\/p><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>By combining these methods, you can effectively protect your LearnDash course content, ensuring that only authorized users can access your materials while maintaining a smooth user experience.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To protect your course content in LearnDash, it&#8217;s essential to leverage the right tools and settings to ensure that only authorized users can access your materials. Here&#8217;s a refined guide that focuses on effective content protection: 1. Use the LearnDash Integrity Add-On The Integrity Add-On offers several features designed to enhance content protection: To set&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_helpful_status":1,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_swpsp_post_exclude":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"doc_category":[164],"doc_tag":[],"knowledge_base":[157],"class_list":["post-286","docs","type-docs","status-publish","hentry","doc_category-user-guides","knowledge_base-resources"],"year_month":"2026-04","word_count":341,"total_views":"4757","reactions":{"happy":"0","normal":"0","sad":"0"},"author_info":{"display_name":"Matt Cromwell","author_link":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/author\/mattc\/"},"doc_category_info":[{"term_name":"User Guides","term_url":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/kb\/resources\/user-guides\/"}],"doc_tag_info":[],"taxonomy_info":{"doc_category":[{"value":164,"label":"User Guides"}],"knowledge_base":[{"value":157,"label":"Resources"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"comment_info":0,"knowledge_base_info":[{"term_name":"Resources","term_url":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/kb\/resources\/","term_slug":"resources"}],"knowledge_base_slug":["resources"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs\/286","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/docs"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=286"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs\/286\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10066,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs\/286\/revisions\/10066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=286"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"doc_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/doc_category?post=286"},{"taxonomy":"doc_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/doc_tag?post=286"},{"taxonomy":"knowledge_base","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledge_base?post=286"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}