English
Go to the download page

Preview: this language version was translated with machine assistance and has not been reviewed by a native speaker. Search engines are asked not to index it.

Redaction

Redaction permanently removes sensitive information from a file instead of only covering it. Afterwards the information cannot be seen, and it cannot be recovered by copying, searching or analyzing the file structure.

Last updated:

Redaction vs. masking

MaskingRedaction
Visible?NoNo
Can it be copied or found by search?Often yesNo
Still in the file?YesNo

Complete redaction includes

  1. Deleting characters in the text layer and hidden OCR text.
  2. Covering the pixels in scanned images.
  3. Removing metadata, attachments, annotations, scripts and earlier versions.
  4. Checking for residue after saving.
  • De-identification: removing information that directly identifies a person, so the data cannot be directly linked to a specific individual.
  • Anonymization: after processing, a person can no longer be identified and the data cannot be restored. Jurisdictions define the two terms differently.

Related pages

Secure redaction

Finds ID, card and phone numbers and emails by check digit, deletes text and hidden text layers, covers image pixels, rewrites the file and checks residue.

Learn more →

Black box is not redaction

A black rectangle drawn on a PDF only adds a shape on top. The text usually stays in the file and can be copied, searched or extracted. Why, and 5 self-tests.

Learn more →

Verify redaction

After redaction, check more than what shows on the page: hidden text layers, scan pixels, internal file strings, metadata, attachments and earlier versions.

Learn more →