Right-click the file in Drive > Get link > Ensure it says "Anyone with the link can view." If the link is restricted, Google sends an HTML login page instead of the PDF.
Q1: Can I download a PDF from Google Drive without a Google account? Yes, if the owner enabled "Anyone with the link can view." Paste the link into an incognito window, then use the direct link trick: add /uc?export=download&id= after drive.google.com . pdf google drive downloader
First, download the PDF. Google Drive does not strip passwords, but it also cannot open them. You need a separate PDF password remover tool (like Smallpdf or iLovePDF ) after download. Right-click the file in Drive > Get link