i'm not so sure about this. i have a package called GhostScript on my computer. it includes two programs of relevance: pdf2ps and ps2ascii. the first will translate a document in PDF format into PostScript, while the second will produce a (decent) text rendering of the PostScript. PDF is not inherently about protection, as many have pointed out.

if the PDF has been encrypted, i have installed the RC4 encryption extension to GhostScript, so provided that i have the key, i can even gain legitimate access to encrypted PDF files.