Failure modes
Why blur and pixelation are not secure redaction
A privacy edit should be judged by what remains in the file—not only by what a viewer sees at first glance.
Obscured is not removed
A blur averages neighboring pixels. Coarse pixelation may preserve enough structure to infer short strings, faces, or repeated values.
- Avoid translucent overlays
- Avoid reversible editing layers
- Avoid cropping tools that retain source data
PDF overlays are especially risky
A rectangle drawn above PDF text may leave the text searchable, selectable, and extractable. Secure output must remove or rebuild the underlying objects.
FreeRedact’s MVP tradeoff
FreeRedact rebuilds each exported page from sanitized pixels. The result sacrifices selectable text and interactive PDF features in exchange for a simpler, verifiable security boundary.
Ready to check a file?
Open the isolated editor. No signup is required and the source file stays in your browser.
Open private editor