Redact PDF
Permanently hide sensitive information by drawing redaction areas directly over your PDF pages.
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Redact PDF guide
How to permanently redact a PDF
Draw black redaction areas over sensitive content, review every page, then create a new PDF in which the redacted pages are flattened so the covered content is no longer present as selectable PDF text or objects underneath the black boxes.
Add your PDF
Select a PDF from your device. Fylento renders page previews locally so you can see exactly where sensitive content appears.
Draw redaction areas
Drag over names, numbers, addresses, signatures, or other information you want permanently hidden.
Create and download
Fylento creates a new PDF with the selected areas permanently blacked out and downloads it with “-redacted” in the file name.
Why this is different from drawing a black rectangle
A visual overlay alone can leave the original text or image underneath. Fylento avoids that on redacted pages by rendering the page, applying the black areas to the rendered pixels, and placing that flattened result into the new PDF.
Underlying text is removed on redacted pages
Redacted pages are rebuilt from the visible page image after the black boxes are applied, so the original selectable text and PDF objects on those pages are not copied into the output.
Unredacted pages stay as PDF pages
Pages with no redaction areas are copied directly from the source PDF instead of being rasterized unnecessarily.
Redacted pages become flattened images
Because a redacted page is flattened into an image, selectable text, links, form fields, and other interactive PDF features on that page are not preserved.
Review carefully before sharing
Redaction is permanent in the generated copy. Make sure every sensitive area is covered before you use or share the downloaded PDF.
How Fylento creates redacted pages
Pages that contain redactions are rendered at 2× PDF scale, covered with solid black rectangles, then saved as high-quality JPEG page images inside the new PDF.
High-resolution rendering
Fylento renders redacted pages at twice the base PDF viewport size before rebuilding them into the output document.
Solid black redaction areas
The selected rectangles are burned into the rendered page image rather than stored as removable overlay annotations.
Redact PDFs privately in your browser
Page rendering, redaction, and output PDF creation happen on your device. The source document does not need to be uploaded to a remote redaction service.
Local page previews
Fylento renders the PDF pages in your browser so you can position redaction areas without sending the document elsewhere.
Local PDF generation
The final redacted PDF is assembled in the browser and downloaded directly to your device.
Common PDF redaction use cases
Redact PDF FAQ
Is the redaction permanent?
Yes, in the generated copy. Pages with redactions are flattened into new page images after the black areas are applied, so the original selectable text and objects on those pages are not kept underneath the redaction boxes.
Can someone remove the black box and reveal the old text?
Not by deleting an overlay annotation from the generated redacted page. The redaction is burned into the flattened page image rather than placed over the original text as a removable rectangle.
Does redaction affect searchable text on the page?
Yes. A page that contains any redaction area is rebuilt as an image, so searchable and selectable text on that entire page is no longer preserved in the output.
Are pages without redactions also flattened?
No. Fylento copies pages with no redaction areas directly from the original PDF.
Does Fylento upload my PDF?
No. The current Redact PDF tool processes the document locally in your browser.
Related PDF tools
Prepare the document before redaction or secure the finished copy afterward.
Protect PDF
Add password protection to the final redacted PDF before sharing it.
Organize PDF
Reorder, rotate, or remove pages before deciding what needs to be redacted.
Edit PDF
Add new text when the document needs editing rather than permanent information removal.
Compress PDF
Reduce file size after redaction when the finished PDF needs to be easier to upload or share.