Produce a redacted copy of the employee file that removes salary, medical, and personal identifiers, keep the discipli…
Open the PDF you want to redact in Adobe Acrobat Pro.
Go to the Tools panel and select Redact a PDF.
Best practiceIf you do not see 'Redact a PDF,' click 'View more' to expand the list of tools.
Use your cursor to select the text or images you want to redact.
CautionRedacted content is permanently removed after applying redactions; double-check your selections.
Click Apply to permanently remove the selected content.
NoteYou may be prompted to save a copy of the document after applying redactions.
Save the redacted PDF with a new file name.
Best practiceSaving a new copy preserves your original unredacted document.
You can preview all redaction marks before applying them to ensure nothing is missed.
This runs in the Acrobat app - there is no separate API for this task.
Redaction only removes visible content. Hidden data, like who made the file or old versions, stays in the PDF. Sanitize removes this hidden data. This makes sure no private details are left behind, even if they are not seen on the page.
| Feature | Redact Tool | Drawing a Rectangle |
|---|---|---|
| Effect on Text | Permanently removes text/images. | Covers text, but it remains underneath. |
| Security | Secure, unrecoverable. | Insecure, text can be copied. |
| Purpose | For hiding sensitive data. | For visual cover-up only. |
Acrobat Pro has a special feature for bulk redaction. You can use pattern-based auto-redaction to find and hide many pieces of similar information, like Social Security Numbers or account numbers, all at once. After, have someone else check a few random examples to be sure it worked correctly.
A reason-code list is a set of standard reasons for why something was hidden, like 'Privacy' or 'Confidential.' Your team should use one to be consistent. This helps everyone understand why certain parts of a document were redacted, which is important for legal or compliance reasons.