What Counts as Sensitive Information?
Before sharing any PDF, check for these categories of sensitive information:
The Right Way to Remove Sensitive Data
There are two approaches people use — only one is actually safe:
Unsafe: Drawing a Black Box on Top
Adding a black rectangle visually hides the text but leaves it in the PDF's data. Someone can remove the box, select the text underneath, or use a PDF inspector to read it. This is not secure redaction.
Safe: Permanent Redaction (What PDF.it Does)
True redaction deletes the underlying data from the PDF file structure. The black box you see in the output is the final state — there's nothing underneath it. This is the standard used by law firms, government agencies, and healthcare organizations.
Step-by-Step: Remove Sensitive Info from a PDF
Open the PDF Redaction tool
Go to pdf.it.com/pdf-redaction. No account needed for the first 3 redactions per day.
Upload your PDF
Upload the document containing sensitive information. The tool supports both text-based and scanned PDFs.
Mark areas to redact
Click and drag to select the sensitive information. You can select text, images, or entire areas across multiple pages in a single session.
Apply and download
Click Apply Redaction. Download the redacted PDF. Verify by trying to click on the black boxes — the data is gone, not just hidden.