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AsliPDF

Sanitize PDF

Strip hidden data and metadata from PDFs.

Runs on this device Free · no signup

How to use Sanitize PDF

  1. 01

    Drop in your PDF

    Add the document you're about to share or publish and want cleaned of hidden data.

  2. 02

    Hidden content is stripped

    Metadata, scripts, embedded files and other non-visible extras are removed, leaving the pages you actually see.

  3. 03

    Download the clean copy

    Save a sanitised PDF that's safe to distribute, with its visible content intact.

Tested and last verified on

About Sanitize PDF

Remove hidden metadata, embedded thumbnails, JavaScript, comments, file attachments and revision history from your PDF before sharing. Keep only the visible content — processed locally for total privacy.

Clean the hidden data out of a document before you share it

What you see on a PDF's pages is only part of what the file contains. Behind the visible content sits a layer of information that most people never look at: metadata recording who created the document and with what software, timestamps, embedded scripts and actions, attached source files, and other extras that ride along invisibly. When you send that document to someone outside your organisation — a client, an opposing party, a journalist, the public — all of that hidden material goes with it. Sanitising strips those non-visible parts away and leaves you with a clean copy that shows only the content you meant to share.

This is the sensible last step before publishing or distributing anything sensitive. A tender response, a legal filing, a report, or a form can all carry more than their pages suggest, and clearing that out protects both your privacy and your organisation's from accidental disclosure.

Sanitise, redact, inspect — and how they fit together

It helps to see sanitising alongside the tools it complements. Redact PDF removes specific visible content — names, figures, passages — that you black out on the page itself. Sanitising works on everything that isn't visible: the metadata and embedded extras behind the scenes. The PDF Inspector lets you review the descriptive properties before you decide, and PDF Attachments shows any embedded files that are riding along. A thorough clean often means redacting what's on the page, checking what's attached, and then sanitising the file so nothing hidden remains.

Because the whole process runs in your browser, you can sanitise a confidential document without ever uploading it, and there's no account or watermark involved. Your original is left untouched, so you keep the full-featured working copy for yourself and hand out only the stripped-down version — exactly the separation you want between an internal document and the one that leaves the building. Making this the routine last step before anything goes out is a simple habit that prevents a surprising number of accidental disclosures.

Questions

Everything runs in your browser. How we keep files private

What does sanitising a PDF remove?

It strips the parts of a document that don't appear on the page but travel with the file: metadata like author and software, embedded scripts and actions, attachments, and other hidden extras. The visible pages — your actual content — are kept.

Why would I sanitise a document before sharing it?

Because a PDF can quietly carry an author's name, editing history, embedded source files, or active scripts. Sanitising is how you make sure a document you send to a client, a counterparty, or the public reveals only what you intend.

Is this the same as redacting?

No. Redaction removes specific visible content you black out on the page. Sanitising removes hidden, non-visible data across the whole file. Many documents benefit from both: redact what's on the page, then sanitise what's behind it.

Is my file uploaded to clean it?

No. Sanitising runs entirely in your browser, so a confidential document is scrubbed on your own device.