Client Portal Security: Three Levels Explained
Compare Strict, Controlled and Relaxed client portal security: email verification, one-time and permanent links, remembered browsers and revoking access.
Illustrative example: Examples use fictional data; product captures demonstrate controls, not customer results or independent assurance.
Client portal security depends on what grants access, not whether the client creates an account. Droplana has three business-wide levels: Strict, Controlled and Relaxed. Strict is the default and requires an identified client session.
Droplana is a client document portal for exchanging files and comments with each client. All three levels are available on every plan; they change access methods, not the sensitivity of documents you are allowed to process.
Client portal security levels compared
| Level | Allowed access | Forwarding consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Strict, default | Verification of an authorized address by email magic link, verified Google access or connected Microsoft access | The portal address alone does not authorize a new recipient. Treat a sign-in link as a credential; do not forward it. |
| Controlled | One-time access links or identified access; no permanent bearer links | An unused one-time link can grant access to its holder. It does not verify that person's email. |
| Relaxed, opt-in | Permanent links, one-time links or identified access | Anyone holding an active permanent link can use it. Sending a magic link separately does not disable that permanent link. |
A one-time access link has a 7-day window and can establish access once. It is distinct from an email magic link. Neither a private URL nor a single-use limit proves the holder's real-world identity.
The setting applies to the whole business. Match it to your most sensitive permitted work rather than choosing a different mode for each client. The security documentation describes the supported methods.
Remembered browsers and revocation
After email verification, the browser is remembered for 90 days. Returning on that browser need not trigger another email. Someone using the same browser may therefore have access; protect the device and mailbox.
Use Revoke all access in the client's share access panel when access must stop. It invalidates that client's links, remembered devices and active portal sessions immediately. A stricter mode setting is not a substitute for explicit revocation. Revoking access does not delete copies already downloaded by the recipient.
In-browser PDF signing requires an email-identified session, including a remembered verified device. A permanent or one-time bearer link alone can allow viewing, comments and uploads when enabled, but not signing. Verification establishes control of an authorized address, not identity checking for a regulated transaction.
An illustrative choice for mixed work
An agency exchanges design files and also handles documents for a legal client. It chooses Strict for the business because that setting fits its access requirements. It still checks whether those documents are permitted and whether shared business-team access is acceptable.
The same assessment matters in legal work, accounting and consulting. A photography workflow may have different sharing needs, but client familiarity alone does not make a reusable link suitable.
What the levels do not change
Multiple authorized contacts on one client share that client's portal. Business team members share access to the business's clients. There are no per-file permissions, assigned client teams or ethical walls.
The level also shapes what a connected AI assistant or automation tool can hand out. Droplana's MCP server works on metadata, such as filenames, client names and comments, and no tool returns a document's contents. On Strict no shareable link is given; on Controlled or Relaxed a search result carries a one-hour link that opens only for someone signed in to your business account. See the broader file-sharing assessment if your decision includes personal data.
Product demonstration with fictional Alder & Finch Skincare data. This desktop panel shows file expiry and comments, not an independent security assessment. View the full-size capture.
The panel shows a file and its conversation. Its approval marker is a changeable status, not proof of reading, a legal decision or a restricted document permission.
Where Droplana fits
It suits recurring two-way exchange where one shared portal per client is the intended boundary. It is not a multi-party data room or a system for restricting individual documents to different advisors.
Free supports 3 clients, 2 GB total storage and 100 MB per file. Each Free file expires after 180 days from upload; the client portal and account remain. Solo is €19/month plus tax for unlimited clients, 50 GB and 1 GB per file, with one business seat. Practice is €49/month plus tax with 5 seats including the owner, 250 GB and 2 GB per file. Studio is €99/month plus tax with unlimited seats, 1 TB and 5 GB per file. Paid plans have no plan-imposed file expiry; they are not a certified archive. See plans and limits.
Questions before you start
How long is a verified browser remembered?
After email verification, the browser is remembered for 90 days. A return visit on that browser need not require another email action. Client access can be revoked before that period ends.
Does Controlled verify the holder of a one-time link?
No. A one-time access link limits reuse but does not establish an email-verified identity. In-browser PDF signing requires an email-identified session.
Does revoking access remove downloaded files?
No. Revoke all access invalidates the client’s links, remembered devices and active portal sessions immediately. It cannot remove copies already downloaded by a recipient.
Start free with fictional documents to check the exchange before using client files.