Redact PDF Files in Your Browser
Remove marked details from a local PDF and download an image-only copy.
Apply creates an image-only PDF. All text loses search, selection and screen-reader access. Review every page before downloading.
Choose a PDF
Open a local file, review each mark and apply redaction.
Redact a PDF
Redact a PDF locally by marking the details to remove, applying redaction and downloading a new file. This free PDF redaction tool sends no document contents to a server.
- Choose a local PDF of up to 20 MB and 20 pages. Password-protected files need an unlocked copy.
- Select Find matches to locate possible personal details. Review a match before choosing Mark match.
- Use Find exact text for a name or phrase. You can also drag over a visible area, or enter its edges as page percentages.
- Open every page. Check each black area and remove any incorrect mark. Confirm that you reviewed all pages.
- Select Apply redaction, then Download PDF. Inspect the downloaded copy before sharing it.
Applying redaction replaces the marked pixels before building a new PDF from page images. The download contains neither the original text layer nor the original images underneath the marks.
Every output page is an image, including pages without marks. Text loses selection, search and screen-reader access. Links, editable forms and digital signatures do not carry into the rebuilt document.
Keep the original in your practice’s approved records. Clear file removes the working document and marks from this page. Leaving the page clears them too, including restored browser history.
Find TFNs and Personal Details Automatically
The local personal information scanner finds possible TFNs, labelled dates of birth, street addresses and labelled account numbers in selectable PDF text. Each match needs your review before it becomes a mark.
TFN detection looks for nine digits, with optional spaces or hyphens. It deliberately includes numbers with a failing checksum, because a mistyped TFN can still identify a client.
Birth dates need a label such as DOB. Address detection looks for a street number and street-type word. Account detection needs an account label. Names require Find exact text or a manual area.
Patterns miss details written differently and can match unrelated numbers. A match marks the whole text fragment supplied by the PDF, which can include neighbouring words. Review the black area before applying it.
This is pattern-based PII detection, not an AI-based PII detection and redaction tool. Document text stays on your device. No model receives the PDF or its contents.
A page without selectable text shows a scan warning. The scanner does not recognise text in images or rotated text. Mixed pages still need a visual check of every image and repeated detail.
Check the Redaction Worked
Open the downloaded PDF in a separate viewer. Inspect every page at a readable zoom. The black areas must cover the complete detail, including its edges and any repeated occurrence.
Search for the removed name or number, then try selecting and copying text around its former position. This tool exports image-only pages, so ordinary text search and copy return nothing across the document.
An empty search cannot prove that a visible image is safe. Inspect the page and, for a sensitive document, run OCR on the downloaded copy to check for surviving readable details.
A black rectangle drawn over text in another editor can leave the text underneath. In this tool’s download, the marked pixels replace the source pixels before the page image is saved.
Document metadata is a separate review. Use the metadata remover for a document whose hidden properties need checking. The related guide explains what to remove before using client information with AI.
Adobe and Other Redact Tools
Adobe Acrobat Pro has a dedicated redaction workflow. Adobe’s redaction instructions separate marking text or images from Apply, followed by saving the result. The workflow also has an option to remove hidden information.
Bluebeam Revu also separates marking from applying redactions. Bluebeam’s documentation says applying redaction permanently deletes the selected text and images from the PDF content stream. Save the resulting file after applying the marks.
Acrobat and Bluebeam edit PDF content through their redaction workflows. This browser tool rebuilds every page as an image. Choose that trade-off when a local image-only extract meets your recipient’s needs.
Drawing a black box with an ordinary markup or shape tool covers the page visually. Use a dedicated redaction operation, apply it and inspect the saved copy before sending it.