How To Redact Sensitive Information From PDFs

Redacting confidential information out of PDFs is not as easy as it initially seems. Most people think that by drawing a black box over the desired text is enough. If you’re one of them, think again. It’s not. Anyone who has access to that file can simply copy the blacked out part, paste it into another document and reveal the content hidden beneath.

Unauthorized access to information such as social security or credit card numbers can get you in serious trouble. Not to mention the devastating effect unwittingly released information to the public can have on a business. All it takes for an event like this to happen is a single negligent employee.

To make sure your documents remain classified and your business intact, you need to use a professional PDF software program such as Able2Extract Professional. This tool is equipped with a proper redaction feature that allows you to permanently remove any sensitive data and protect your PDF documents.

The whole redaction process is as straightforward as it can get. The best part– your confidential PDF can be dealt with from your desktop or laptop. No need to upload it to untrusted external servers and risk exposure.

Follow the 5 steps below and learn how to redact PDFs with Able2Extract Professional 12:

Download & install Able2Extract (7-day free trial)

Select the appropriate version for Windows, macOS or Linux.

Open the PDF that contains sensitive data

Click on the Open icon in the top left corner, locate your PDF, select it and click Open.

Switch to PDF editor

Click on the Edit icon located on the toolbar.

Activate the Redaction tool

Click on the black marker icon located on the editing side panel to the right.

Apply the redaction

Just draw a rectangular box around the word, sentence or paragraph.

Or watch this short video tutorial and see it in action:

That’s all it takes to permanently make any text or images from the document unobtainable.  The software places a black stripe over the content, signifying that the content beneath has been removed. No one can see or copy the data because there is nothing there.

 

If you’re working in a highly competitive industry, then you know how important confidentiality is. For PDFs that require a good deal of redacting, it would be a wise choice to equip yourself with professional PDF software that will ensure your documents remain confidential.

Able2Extract Professional certainly falls into that category. After redacting your PDFs with Able2Extract you can share your documents with confidence knowing that no classified information will be accidentally distributed.

Furthermore, with Able2Extract you’re not getting just a neat redaction tool. Not even close. The software is an all-in-one PDF suite that can handle any PDF task you throw at it. Here is just a brief summary of what Able2Extract is capable of:

• PDF conversion (native & scanned PDF files to all major file formats such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint…)
• PDF creation (from all of the major file formats to PDF)
• PDF editing (pages, text, images, forms)
• PDF security (password encryption, file permissions)
• Annotation tool (multiple markup options such as sticky notes, watermarks, stamps, highlight…)

Bearing in mind everything Able2Extract has to offer, the software comes with a reasonable price tag of $149.95 for a lifetime license. You can download a free trial from the developer’s website and see how it performs against your PDF needs.