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Anonymize a PDF document

Share a court ruling, a file or a sample document without anyone being able to recognize the people in it: here is what to hide, and how to do it without uploading the file.

or drag it here

Processed on your device, nothing is uploaded

How do I anonymize a PDF document?

  1. Choose your PDF, then tap “Detect personal data”: IBANs, card and social security numbers, e-mail addresses and phone numbers are hidden.
  2. Then search for each name, address or case number, and drag over signatures, photos and stamps.
  3. Press “Redact and save”, then check every page of the result.

For the CNIL (the French data protection authority), anonymizing means making it impossible, in practice and irreversibly, to identify a person. Replacing a name with an initial or a number is generally not enough: that is pseudonymization, and the data remain personal data subject to the GDPR. Truly anonymous data, on the other hand, fall outside its scope.

The CNIL sets out three criteria: it must not be possible to single out a person, to link together pieces of information about them, or to infer new information about them. In a document, therefore, hide direct identifiers (name, address, phone, e-mail, numbers), but also indirect ones: date of birth, employer, case number, number plate, signature, photo, or a rare detail that makes someone recognizable.

TwoDocument automatically spots IBANs, card numbers, social security numbers, e-mail addresses and phone numbers. Names and postal addresses are not recognized automatically: search for them one by one. Each page with hidden content is redrawn as an image without the hidden information, and the file's title, author, subject and keywords are erased. The file is never uploaded: there is no need to entrust personal data to an online service in order to anonymize it.

Frequently asked questions

Is hiding names enough to anonymize a document?

Rarely. According to the CNIL, if a person remains recognizable by cross-checking (address, date, job title, case number), the document is only pseudonymized and remains subject to the GDPR.

Are the PDF's comments removed?

On redacted pages, yes: they are redrawn as images. On the other pages, comments are kept and may contain an author's name: check them, or also place a hiding area on those pages so that they are redrawn.

Can a scanned PDF be anonymized?

Yes, by dragging by hand over each area to hide: detection and search can't read the text in an image. Check each page carefully.

Is my document uploaded to be anonymized?

No. Everything is done in your browser; the original document doesn't leave your device.

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