Instead of saving the PDF by either using the "Save" option or "Save As" option, go to "File...Print" in Adobe Acrobat. Set the printer to "Microsoft Print to PDF" (or a similar PDF-related name). If you have comments that you would like appended within the document, you can click the "Summarize Comments" button:Instead of saving the PDF by either using the "Save" option or "Save As" option, go to "File...Print" in Adobe Acrobat. Set the printer to "Microsoft Print to PDF" (or a similar PDF-related name). If you have comments that you would like appended within the document, you can click the "Summarize Comments" button: Introduction PDF is a very common file format for documents but one thing people may not realise is that the complexity the format provides can mean some things aren’t quite as they seem. Specifically, I’ve seen numerous “redacted” documents where the user has drawn over the text and saved the file. However, under the hood, have layers which means that the block or marker you used is actually may actually be saved as a separate layer from the text it’s covering. This means anyone who opens the file can simply move the block away and see the text that was underneath! PDFs Easy Fix Adobe Acrobat Pro (paid versions) supports proper redacting of text but it can be too expensive to buy for people to justify their use, depending on how often you used advanced features. I simply had to use it to send a bank statement for proof of address but there was no need for the company to be able to see all my transactions on the statement. Fortunately, the free version of Adobe Acrobat can help with that. Instead of saving the PDF by either using the "Save" option or "Save As" option, go to " " in Adobe Acrobat. Set the printer to " " (or a similar PDF-related name). If you have comments that you would like appended within the document, you can click the " " button: File...Print Microsoft Print to PDF Summarize Comments Click “ ” and it should ask to save the file to a location and once you choose a location, it will create a PDF file that is now flattened. That’s it! The text under your drawing is no longer visible by moving the line or block out of the way. This also means nothing can be edited, so it’s advisable to use it once you have the final version you want to send as opposed to constantly flattening it after every edit. Print Things to Be Aware of can cause a decrease in quality but generally should retain a high enough quality for screen usage. Flattening PDFs Flattening a PDF file can sometimes lead to errors or inconsistencies in the document, especially if there are complex graphics. Always proofread after to ensure everything looks as expected. Finally, flattening can also affect OCR and accessibility tools making them harder to use. Consider your audience and requirements for flattening. However, for a lot of use cases, the downsides to flattening are outweighed by the pros. The paid version of Acrobat, and other readers, feature more advanced levels of redaction and such so depending on your requirements, it may be better value to use that. Additionally, PDFs offer other security aspects such as encryption and password-protection but this post was specifically for ensuring text that's been drawn over stays hidden. Advanced Usage Using ImageMagick For those who want to automate this, you can use a command line too like ImageMagick. The following command flattens the PDF with a DPI of 300. You can toy around with the DPI value if you need to, the higher the value, the bigger the file size. convert -density 300 -quality 100 input.pdf -flatten flattened_output.pdf I hope that helps, feel free to leave any comments or questions below.

This story contains new, firsthand information uncovered by the writer.

The code in this story is for educational purposes. The readers are solely responsible for whatever they build with it.

The writer is smart, but don't just like, take their word for it. #DoYourOwnResearch

Are your PDFs Actually Redacted? Double Check!

About Author

Comments

TOPICS

THIS ARTICLE WAS FEATURED IN

Related Stories

Untitled Story

How to Use the OpenAI API and LangChain to Run ChatGPT-Style Questions Over Your Own Files

10 Reasons Wordpress Sites Get Hacked and How to Avoid Them

10 Features of a Secure Website

10 Cybersecurity Books Every Business Owner Should Read

10 Cybersecurity Tips Everyone Should Follow

How to Use the OpenAI API and LangChain to Run ChatGPT-Style Questions Over Your Own Files

10 Reasons Wordpress Sites Get Hacked and How to Avoid Them

10 Features of a Secure Website

10 Cybersecurity Books Every Business Owner Should Read

10 Cybersecurity Tips Everyone Should Follow

Light-Mode

Classic

Newspaper

Dark-Mode

Neon Noir

Minty

HN StartUps