The text must be digitally or physically removed to be redacted. Because of how a PDF is designed it has “layers”, which means that the text underneath the boxes is still there. Or simply drew black boxes over text in a PDF document and saved it. How does this happen? It is likely that someone drew a black text box over the words they wanted to redact in a Word document and then either converted or printed the document to PDF. Failure to take these steps and use a product designed for redaction can result in a file that looks redacted but isn’t. For good measure, metadata should also be removed from the document.

In most software that provides a redaction function, redaction is a multi-step process and requires that the text or images are marked for redaction, then the redaction is applied, and then the document is saved as a new document so the original is not over-written. In regard to the most recent headline involving failed redaction in a court filing submitted by Jones Day, notable legal technology author Bob Ambrogi wrote a funny, but scathing, piece outlining how redaction can go wrong. Headlines over the years have called attention to failed redaction efforts, which can result in the exposure of potential malfeasance or result in disciplinary action. So, how do you apply redaction correctly? What’s the Problem? Voila, due to improper redaction all the information is readily available. Select all the text, copy it, and paste it into a new document. For instance, click here to view a “redacted” document.

An improperly redacted document does not protect sensitive information, which is revealed with little effort. In other instances, such as an FOIA request, information is redacted to protect personal privacy or national security. In court filings, the purpose of redaction is to protect sensitive information, such as social security numbers or the names of minors. When a document is redacted it often piques the interest of people because the natural question is “what am I not seeing?”.

How to redact a word document in mac