Symptoms:
- When attempting to import/embed a protected document (Excel, Word, PDF, etc.) into another document, the operation fails
- This failure occurs regardless of whether the target document is protected or non-protected
- Users may receive error messages indicating the import operation cannot be completed
- The embedding functionality is blocked at the system level
Expected Behaviour:
- Importing non-protected documents into protected documents works as expected (with Full Control permissions on the target protected document)
- Importing non-protected documents into other non-protected documents functions normally
- Protected documents cannot be embedded into any document - this is intentional security behaviour
Root Cause:
- Protected documents have embedded security policies that prevent them from being imported or embedded into other files
- This restriction applies to all scenarios: protected-to-protected, protected-to-non-protected
- The security framework is designed to prevent potential data leakage and maintain protection integrity
- This behaviour strengthens overall document security by preventing bypass of protection controls
Resolution/Workaround:
Verify Protection Status: Ensure the source document being imported is not protected
If Content Reuse is Required:
- Unprotect the source file (if policy permissions allow)
- Copy and paste content manually (subject to policy restrictions)
- Work with unprotected versions of the documents
- Use alternative content sharing methods that comply with organizational policies
For Protected Target Documents: Ensure you have Full Control permissions when importing unprotected content