Books protected by DRM

Why LuceVoce refuses books and documents protected by DRM or a password, how to recognise them, and what you can do to listen to the book instead.

Windows

Yes

Mac

Yes

iPad

Yes

iPhone

Yes

LuceVoce cannot open books protected by DRM (digital rights management). It recognises them, refuses them with a clear message, and never tries to break the protection.

What DRM is

DRM is a lock that some stores and lenders put on the books they sell or lend, so the book opens only in their own app or device. A protected book looks like any other file, but its text is encrypted.

Which files are refused

• EPUB books protected by Adobe (ADEPT), Readium LCP, Kobo or Apple
• Kindle books with Mobipocket DRM
• PDFs with a password or copy protection
• Word, OpenDocument and PowerPoint files protected by a password or rights management
• Audible audiobooks

What you see

• When you add a protected book, a message explains it, such as "This EPUB is protected by DRM and cannot be read."
• When you scan a folder, protected books are not added. The report lists them apart under Protected by DRM, with the kind of protection.

What you can do

• Read the book in the app of the store or library it came from.
• Look for a DRM-free edition. Many publishers and shops sell books without DRM, and many classics are free and unprotected: see Get free books and audiobooks.
• For a document of your own that has a password, open it in the app that made it, save a copy without the password, and add that copy.

Good to know

• Older Kindle PRC and AZW files open normally when they have no DRM.
• LuceVoce offers no way to remove DRM.

Last updated 13 November 2026