Redact a PDF before AI upload
A full checklist for reviewing common PII, hidden text, metadata, filenames, and final export behavior.
AI PDF privacy guides
Use these guides when a PDF needs cleanup before AI review, document analysis, or internal RAG ingestion.
Start here
A good default is simple: keep the original local, prepare a separate Safe Copy, then upload only the cleaned export.
Core guides
By document type
Contracts and leases
Keep the clauses needed for review, remove unrelated client, address, and account details.
Resumes and HR PDFs
Preserve work history or policy text while reducing personal contact and employee-specific fields.
Tax and bank statements
Extract useful figures without uploading full account numbers, IDs, or unrelated pages.
By risk
Hidden text
OCR and text layers can remain searchable even when a page looks covered.
Metadata
Author, app, timestamp, and producer fields can add context the upload does not need.
Filename
A filename can reveal a client, case, diagnosis, address, or internal project before anyone reads the PDF.
Recommended workflow
- Keep the original PDF local.
- Review visible content, OCR text, metadata, and filename risk.
- Redact only what the upload does not need.
- Export a separate Safe Copy.
- Verify search, copy, metadata, and filename behavior.
- Upload the Safe Copy, not the source file.