Why is a black rectangle not enough?
A rectangle is just another object drawn on top. The text stays in the file, so anyone can select, copy or extract it. Genuine redaction deletes the content first.
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Redact PDF
Real redaction means the words are gone, not hidden. Drawing a black rectangle in most editors leaves the text underneath fully selectable and copyable, which is how redaction failures end up in the news. This tool removes the content and then burns the redaction into the page. It is free, needs no account, and adds no watermark to your result.
Built for: redact pdf
Deleted as soon as you download itFree · fair-use only
Drop PDF file herePDF output · one source file
Included in this tool
Search-term redactionRectangle redactionPermanent removalPage selection
When you need this
What people use it for.
Removing names, addresses or account numbers before filing or publishing a document
Preparing records for disclosure where specific passages must be unreadable
Sharing a contract with commercial terms genuinely removed rather than covered
How it works
What happens to your file.
You select text or a rectangular region, and the matching content is removed from the page rather than covered. The redaction is then applied and the document saved, so the underlying characters no longer exist in the file.
Where it stops: Redaction cannot undo what metadata or attachments still reveal. Clear the document metadata as well, and remember that a redacted name may still be inferable from surrounding context.
What this tool includes
Everything you need, without a paywall.
Search-term redaction
Rectangle redaction
Permanent removal
Page selection
Questions
Common questions.
Can the redacted text be recovered?
Not from the page content, because it is removed before the file is saved. You should still clear metadata separately, since it can hold a title or author you meant to hide.
Does redaction work on scanned documents?
On a scanned page the words are pixels, so a region redaction removes that part of the image. Run OCR first if you need to search for the text you intend to remove.
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