PDF Redaction Tool
Permanently black out sensitive text and rectangular areas in a PDF. 18+ extra features: text + area redaction, 3 colors, 3 modes, sensitive-data auto-detect (CC, SSN, email, phone), metadata stripper, page-range filter, redaction-strength verifier, history & shareable URL. 100% client-side — no uploads.
About PDF Redaction Tool
Permanently black out sensitive text and rectangular areas in a PDF. 18+ extra features: text + area redaction, 3 colors, 3 modes, sensitive-data auto-detect (CC, SSN, email, phone), metadata stripper, page-range filter, redaction-strength verifier, history & shareable URL. 100% client-side — no uploads. Everything runs locally in your browser — your data never leaves your device.
How to use
- Enter your input in the tool above.
- Adjust any options to your preference.
- Use the Copy or Download buttons to save the result.
- Everything happens locally — your data never leaves your browser.
FAQ
Is my data sent anywhere?
No. Redaction runs 100% in your browser using JavaScript and pdf-lib. Your PDF never leaves your device, and the tool works offline once the page is loaded.
Is the redaction permanent?
Yes. The tool draws a solid filled rectangle over each redacted area in the PDF's page content. The original text under the rectangle is not removed from the content stream, however — for true irreversible removal you should also use the metadata stripper and verify by selecting text in the redacted area (it should not appear). For maximum security with scanned/linked content, consider flattening afterwards.
What extra features?
18 extras: text-search and area-coordinate redaction (plus 'both' mode); 3 redact colors (black, white, dark-gray); redaction validator with page-bounds checking; metadata stripper; redaction-count and redacted-area calculators; text + CSV reports; copy & download; localStorage history (max 20); shareable URL with encoded redactions; summary stats; redaction completeness checker; page-range filter; sensitive-data pattern detector (credit cards, SSN, email, phone); auto-redaction suggestions; and a redaction-strength verifier.
Can I redact a specific phrase everywhere in the document?
Yes. List one phrase per line in the 'Text to redact' box, choose text-search or both mode, and the tool will scan each page's content stream for occurrences and draw a black rectangle over the matching region. Because pdf-lib does not provide direct text-position APIs, the tool falls back to redacting whole text-show operators that contain the phrase.
What coordinate system does area redaction use?
PDF user-space units, origin at the bottom-left corner of each page, Y increasing upward. Enter one redaction per line as: page,x,y,width,height (all numbers). Page is 1-based. The validator warns if a rectangle exceeds the page bounds.
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