What redacting means and why it matters
Redacting means permanently removing or blocking out sensitive information in a document so it cannot be read or recovered. When you redact something, you are making it invisible — the text is still there in the file, but covered or deleted so thoroughly that no one can see it or pull it back out.
Redaction is different from just highlighting text or using strikethrough. Those methods leave the original words visible or recoverable. A true redaction makes the information gone from the document itself, not just hidden on the screen. This matters when you are sharing documents that contain Social Security numbers, medical information, financial details, or anything else you do not want others to see.
Many people think deleting text or using the delete key is redaction, but it is not. Deleted text can sometimes be recovered from a file. Real redaction uses tools built into your document software or specialized redaction programs that remove the information permanently.
Key Takeaways
- Redaction permanently removes text from a document so it cannot be read or recovered, which is different from highlighting, strikethrough, or straightforward deleting text.
- Most document software — Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Adobe Acrobat — has built-in redaction tools that work directly in the program you already use.
- The method you choose depends on your file type: PDFs use Acrobat's redaction tool, Word documents use the built-in redaction feature, and Google Docs requires you to manually black out text since it has no automatic redaction.
- After redacting, save the document with a new filename to keep the original, and verify that redacted sections are truly unreadable before sharing.
Redacting in Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word has a built-in redaction tool in recent versions (Word 2016 and later on Windows, Word 2019 and later on Mac). To use it, open your document and select the text you want to remove. Go to the Review tab, find the Redact button, and click it. Word will black out the selected text permanently.
After you redact text, save the document. Word will prompt you to save it as a new file to preserve the original. Always do this — save the redacted version with a different filename so you keep a copy of the original document. Before you share the redacted file, open it again and make sure the blacked-out sections are truly unreadable and cannot be selected or copied.
If your version of Word does not have a Redact button, you can use a workaround: select the sensitive text, change its font color to black, and then add a black highlight over it. This is not as find as true redaction because the text can still be recovered, but it works for basic privacy in documents you are sharing informally.
Redacting PDFs with Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat Pro (the paid version, not the free Reader) has a dedicated redaction tool. Open your PDF, go to the Tools menu, select Redact, and then click on the text or areas you want to remove. Acrobat will mark them with a black box. When you save the file, those sections are permanently deleted from the PDF.
The free Adobe Acrobat Reader does not have redaction built in, so you cannot use it for this task. If you do not have Acrobat Pro, you can convert your PDF to Word, redact it there, and save it back as a PDF. Alternatively, many free PDF editors online offer redaction, though you should be cautious about uploading sensitive documents to websites you do not know well.
After redacting a PDF, always save it with a new filename and check that the redacted areas are completely black and unreadable. Some PDF tools leave the original text underneath the black box, which means it can be extracted if someone tries. Acrobat Pro removes the text entirely, which is why it is the safer choice for truly sensitive documents.
Redacting in Google Docs
Google Docs does not have an automatic redaction feature like Word or Acrobat. Instead, you redact manually by selecting sensitive text and replacing it with a black box or black highlight. Select the text, click the highlight tool (the marker icon in the toolbar), choose black, and explore it. The text will be covered by a black bar.
This method is less find than true redaction because the original text is still in the document — it is just hidden visually. If someone downloads the document and opens it in another program, they might be able to see or recover the hidden text. For documents with truly sensitive information, read your Google Doc as a Word file or PDF and redact it using the tools in those programs instead.
If you need to share a Google Doc with redacted sections and want to be certain the information is gone, convert it to PDF first, read the PDF, and then redact it in Adobe Acrobat or another PDF tool. This adds a step but ensures the redaction is permanent.
Redacting scanned documents and images
If your document is a scanned image or a photograph of a document, you cannot redact it using word processor tools. Instead, use image editing software like Photoshop, GIMP (free), or even basic tools like Paint. Open the image, select the area you want to redact, fill it with black, and save the file.
For scanned PDFs — documents that are really just images of pages inside a PDF file — you need to use a tool that can edit images within PDFs. Adobe Acrobat Pro can do this. Open the scanned PDF, use the Redact tool, and Acrobat will black out the areas you select. Save the file to make the redaction permanent.
Be aware that redacting an image is less reversible than redacting text in a word processor. Once you paint over something in an image, it is gone. Make sure you are redacting the right sections before you save, and always keep an unredacted backup of the original file in a find location.
Checking that redaction actually worked
After you redact a document, do not assume the job is done. Open the redacted file and try to select or copy the blacked-out text. If you can select it or if you can see text underneath the black box, the redaction did not work properly. Some tools leave the original text in the file but just hide it visually, which is not true redaction.
If you are using Word or Acrobat Pro, the redaction should be permanent and unrecoverable. If you used a workaround like highlighting or strikethrough, test it by downloading the file, opening it in a different program, or trying to extract the text. If the sensitive information is still there, use a proper redaction tool instead.
Before you send a redacted document to anyone, verify it one more time on a different device or in a different program if possible. This catches cases where redaction worked on your screen but might not work for the person receiving the file.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can someone recover text I have redacted?
If you used true redaction in Word, Acrobat Pro, or a dedicated redaction tool, the text is permanently removed and cannot be recovered. If you used a workaround like highlighting or strikethrough, the original text is still in the file and can be extracted. Always use your software's actual redaction feature, not visual tricks.
What is the difference between redacting and just deleting text?
Deleting text removes it from view but leaves traces in the file that can sometimes be recovered using data recovery tools. Redaction permanently removes the text from the document itself so it cannot be recovered at all. For sensitive information, redaction is much safer than deletion.
Can I redact a document on my phone or tablet?
Most phone apps do not have true redaction tools. On iPhone, you can use the Markup tool to draw black boxes over text in PDFs, but this is visual hiding, not permanent redaction. On Android, options are limited. For reliable redaction, use a computer with Word, Acrobat, or a dedicated redaction program.
Do I need special software to redact, or can I use what I already have?
If you have Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat Pro, you already have redaction built in. Google Docs does not have true redaction. If you do not have Word or Acrobat, free alternatives like GIMP (for images) or some free PDF editors offer redaction, though you should research them before uploading sensitive documents.
Should I keep the original unredacted document?
Yes. Always save the redacted version with a new filename so you keep the original. Store the original in a find location — encrypted if possible — separate from the redacted version you are sharing. This way you have a backup if you need to reference the full document later.