Redact PDF

Permanently remove sensitive information from your PDF files. Content is physically deleted from the PDF data structure — not just visually covered.

Select PDF Files

Maximum file size: 30 MB per file

Define Redaction Rules
Quick presets — click to toggle
Email Address[email protected]
Credit Card Number4111 1111 1111 1111
IP Address192.168.1.1
Dates01/15/2024
PRO
Social Security Number123-45-6789
US Phone Number(555) 123-4567
Custom text or regex (one per line, wrap regex in /slashes/)

How to Redact a PDF Online

Permanently remove sensitive information in four simple steps.

STEP 1

Upload Your PDF

Select one or more PDF files to redact. Files up to 30 MB are supported. Your files are encrypted during transfer and automatically deleted after processing.

STEP 2

Define Redaction Rules

Choose from smart presets for common PII patterns (SSN, phone numbers, ID cards, emails) or enter custom text and regex patterns. Multiple rules can be applied simultaneously.

STEP 3

Review Matches

Preview all detected matches highlighted on your PDF pages. Toggle individual items on or off to fine-tune what gets redacted before committing.

STEP 4

Download Redacted PDF

Apply permanent redaction and download your file. Sensitive content is physically removed from the PDF data structure — it cannot be recovered by copying text, using OCR, or extracting metadata.

Why Professionals Choose Setpdf for PDF Redaction

True permanent redaction trusted by legal, finance, and compliance teams worldwide.

True Permanent Redaction

Content is physically removed from the PDF data structure, not merely covered with black boxes. Redacted data cannot be recovered through text extraction, OCR, or metadata analysis.

Batch Multi-File Processing

Upload and redact multiple PDFs at once. Apply the same redaction rules across all files for consistent, efficient processing of large document sets.

Smart Pattern Detection

Built-in patterns for Social Security numbers, phone numbers, email addresses, credit card numbers, and locale-specific ID formats. Full regex support for custom patterns.

Preview Before Applying

Review every detected match highlighted directly on the PDF pages. Toggle individual items on or off before committing the irreversible redaction.

Metadata Cleanup

Optionally strip all document metadata — author name, creation date, software info, and XMP data — to prevent information leakage through PDF properties.

Secure Server-Side Processing

Files are processed in isolated server containers, encrypted in transit via 256-bit TLS, and automatically deleted after processing. Your documents never leave our secure infrastructure.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about PDF redaction, data privacy, and compliance.

Is the redaction truly permanent?

Yes. Setpdf uses a certified redaction process that physically removes text, image, and vector data from the PDF file structure. The content bytes are deleted and the file is saved with garbage collection to eliminate all unreferenced objects. This is fundamentally different from tools that merely place black rectangles over sensitive content.

No. Once redaction is applied, the underlying data is permanently removed from the PDF. The content cannot be recovered through text copying, OCR scanning, metadata extraction, or any other method. The file is also saved with full garbage collection (level 4) to purge any residual data.

You can redact text content using exact text search, regular expressions, or built-in patterns for common PII like Social Security numbers, phone numbers, email addresses, credit card numbers, and national ID formats. Images and vector graphics overlapping the redaction area are also removed.

Redaction works with the searchable text layer in a PDF. For scanned PDFs that have been processed with OCR and contain a text layer, the text can be matched and redacted. For pure image-based scans without OCR, text pattern matching will not find content — however, you can still apply area-based redaction to specific page regions.

Yes. Files are encrypted during transfer using 256-bit TLS. Processing occurs in isolated server containers with no persistent storage. All uploaded and processed files are automatically deleted after processing completes. We never store, share, or access your document contents.

Smart presets are built-in regular expressions optimized for common sensitive data formats. They include patterns for US Social Security Numbers, Chinese ID card numbers, IBAN numbers, phone numbers in various country formats, email addresses, credit card numbers, IP addresses, and more. Available presets vary based on your language setting to show the most relevant patterns.