Permanently redact and sanitize PDF
Black out sensitive areas of a PDF with boxes; the result is a new image-only PDF without the original text, form fields or metadata.
- Runs in your browser
- No upload
- Check before download
Local file
Local file
Files and content stay on this device. Aggregate action counts are sent only with your separate consent. Plain unencrypted PDFs only: 10 MB/file, 20 pages, 10000 objects, no object streams, signatures, forms or complex navigation. Text and vectors remain. Page numbering supports unrotated pages. A new image-only PDF permanently replaces selected pixels. All text/search/accessibility and original metadata, links and attachments are lost. Manually check every page. 10 MB, 20 pages, 16 million rendered pixels, 72–144 DPI. No legal guarantee.
Settings
Result
Local file
Permanently redact and sanitize PDF
- Prepare the input
Load a supported PDF, specify the redaction rectangles for the pages you want, and choose the raster resolution. Check every rectangle in the preview, and confirm the destructive image-only transformation before you run it.
- Try the worked example
On a synthetic page that contains a private label, put a rectangle over the whole label with enough margin. The exported page becomes a raster image with replacement pixels in that area, not an annotation over the original text that someone could remove.
- Check and save
Reopen the saved PDF and check every page, including any private material you didn't cover. Text search, selection and accessibility structure are lost, and the original metadata, links and attachments are not carried over into the new image-only file. Keep the original somewhere secure.
Questions
Is this the same as drawing a black box or cropping?
No. Those approaches can leave the underlying content recoverable. This workflow turns the pages into images and replaces the selected pixels in a new PDF. You still have to check by hand that the rectangles cover everything.
Can I keep selectable text or accessible tags?
Not with this image-only workflow. Rasterizing loses text search, selectable text and the original accessibility structure. If you need those, use an alternative that has been properly reviewed.
Does a successful export certify legal redaction?
No. The tool can't decide which information is confidential or guarantee that the redaction is legally adequate. The profile is 10 MiB, 20 pages and 16 million rendered pixels at 72–144 DPI. Check all the output pages yourself.