1. Open the PDF in Acrobat, and from the global bar in the upper left, Select All tools > Redact a PDF. The Redact a PDF toolset is open on the left pane.
Removing sensitive content from PDFs Part 3
Redaction codes (Acrobat Pro)
Acrobat uses overlay text to overprint areas selected for redaction. One example of overlay text is a redaction code, which consists of one or more code entries from a code set. Acrobat includes the U.S. FOIA and U.S. Privacy Act code sets that you can use. You can use either codes or custom text to create overlay text. The difference is that redaction codes are text entries that you can save, export, and import. One code set can contain multiple codes.
Note
Codes don’t save the current attributes for overlay text as part of the code definition, such as colors, font characteristics, and repetition or size of text. Codes only make the overlay text itself reusable in future sessions and by other users with whom you share code sets. You set other attributes for the code in the Redaction Tool Properties dialog box.
Create redaction codes and code sets
2. Select Set Properties. The Redaction Tool Properties dialog box is displayed.
Create redaction codes using the Redaction Tool Properties dialog box. 3. Select Use Overlay Text.
4. Select Redaction Code.
5. To add multiple code entries to a redaction code, select an entry from the Code Entries list and select Add Selected Entry. Repeat as desired. Select Remove Selected Entry to delete a code entry in the Redaction Code list.
6. (Optional) Select Edit Codes to make additional changes.
In the Redaction Code Editor dialog box, select Add Set.
7. (Optional) Type a new name for the set in the text field below the list of code sets, and then select Rename Set.
8. Select Add Code, type the text that you want to appear as overlay text in the text field below the list of code entries and then select Rename Code.
- 9. Repeat the previous step to add another code entry to that code set, or repeat the previous three steps to create additional code sets and codes.
Edit redaction codes and code sets (Acrobat Pro)
1. Open the PDF in Acrobat, and from the global bar in the upper left, Select All tools > Redact a PDF. The Redact a PDF toolset is open on the left pane.
2. Select Set Properties. The Redaction Tool Properties dialog box is displayed.
3. Select Use Overlay Text, and then select Redaction Code.
4. Select a code set from the list on the left, and select Edit Codes.
5. In the Redaction Code Editor dialog box, you can remove, export, import or rename a code set.
6. (Optional) With the Code Set selected, select the code entry that you want to edit, and do one of the following:
- To remove a code entry, select Remove Code.
- To rename a code entry, type a new name in the box below the list and select Rename Code.
Redaction code editor settings
- Remove Set: To remove a code set and all of the code entries within it, select an entry from the Code Set and select Remove Set.
- Export Set: To export a code set to a separate XML file that you can reuse in other PDFs or share with others, select the code set. Then select Export Set, specify a filename and location, and select Save.
- Import Set: To import a previously saved code set, select Import Set, locate and select that file, and select Open.
- Rename Set: To rename a code set, select an entry from the Code Set, type a new name in the box below the list, and select Rename Set.
Apply multiple code entries to a single redaction
1. Right-click the redaction marker.
2. Select a Code Set from the list at the bottom of the context menu, and then select a code entry from the drop-down menu. A check mark appears next to the code entry when the code is applied.
3. Repeat the previous steps to add another code entry to the redaction.
Hold your pointer over the redaction mark to see the code entries, each one separated by a comma.
Note
To apply the same code to multiple redactions, set the redaction properties before you mark the content. In the secondary toolbar, click Properties. Select Use Overlay Text, then select Redaction Code. Select a Code Set and a code entry, then click Add Selected Entry.
Redact images in PDF
1. Select the image you want to redact.
2. From the contextual menu that appears, select Redact image.
Redaction limitations
Related Articles
Removing sensitive content from PDFs Part 1
Why redact or remove sensitive content? Before you distribute a PDF, you may want to examine the document for sensitive content or private information that can trace the document to you. Use the Redact a PDF tool to remove or redact sensitive images ...Removing sensitive content from PDFs Part 2
Redact Hidden Information options Metadata Metadata includes information about the document and its contents, such as the author’s name, keywords, and copyright information. To view metadata, choose File > Document Properties (macOS) or hamburger ...Reading Order tool for PDFs Part 1
Reading Order tool overview The Reading Order tool provides the easiest and quickest way to fix reading order and basic tagging problems. When you select the tool, a dialog box opens that lets you see overlay highlights that show the order of page ...Optimizing PDFs Part 1
Acrobat reduces the size of a PDF file without compromising quality. The Acrobat PDF compression tool balances an optimized file size against the expected quality of images, fonts, and other file content. Save using PDF optimizer (Acrobat Pro) PDF ...Optimizing PDFs Part 2
PDF Optimizer options (Acrobat Pro) Use the options from the panels in the PDF Optimizer dialog box to reduce the size of a PDF. Images panel The Images panel of the PDF Optimizer lets you set options for color, grayscale, and monochrome image ...