See the hidden author, title and software fingerprints inside any PDF — then strip them out in one click. Everything happens in your browser: no upload, no file-size cap, no account.
CVs, contracts, reports, drafts — one PDF at a time
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Every PDF carries two things: the pages you see, and a hidden layer of descriptive data you don't. The standard block — called the Document Information Dictionary — can hold a title, author, subject, keywords, the name of the software that created the file, the software that produced it, and the creation and modification dates. Many PDFs also carry a second block in XML format called XMP, which often repeats the same details and can hold even more.
None of this appears on the page. But it is trivially readable: open any PDF in a desktop reader, click File → Properties, and there it is. Where does it come from? Mostly from the software that made the file. When Word or Google Docs exports a PDF, the author field quietly becomes the computer's account name or the name typed into the office settings. Export tools stamp their own name and version into the creator and producer fields. Every save writes a timestamp. Scanners and phone apps add their own fingerprints too.
Most people share PDFs for years without ever opening that properties panel — which is exactly why metadata leaks are so common. A document can look perfectly anonymous on screen while carrying your full name, your company's software stack, and the exact minute you finished it.
This tool deletes all eight standard metadata fields — Title, Author, Subject, Keywords, Creator, Producer, CreationDate and ModDate — plus the XMP metadata stream if one is present. That covers both hiding places, because a cleaner that only wipes the standard block while leaving the XMP copy behind hasn't really cleaned anything.
The part other tools skip is the preview. Most metadata cleaners work blind: you upload a file, download a result, and take their word that something was removed. Here the order is reversed — the tool reads your PDF first and shows you a table of everything it found, field by field. You see the leak before you fix it, which is also how you learn which of your apps is writing the most revealing metadata.
The architecture is the privacy story. The well-known online cleaners are server tools: your file travels to their machine, gets processed, and comes back — which is why they cap uploads (a few megabytes per file here, a couple of dozen files a day there) and why your document briefly sits on someone else's server. Browser-local open-source scripts avoid the upload but demand a terminal and offer no preview. This tool takes the third path: full processing in your browser with JavaScript, a visible before-and-after, no upload, no file-size cap, no daily quota, no account.
Metadata stripping isn't paranoia — for several everyday situations it is basic document hygiene:
The habit to build is simple: strip before you send, not after. Once a file with your name in it has been emailed, downloaded or posted, cleaning your own copy changes nothing — the leaked copies are already out there.
Removing metadata sounds dramatic, but the operation is surgically small. The tool deletes only the document-information entries and the XMP stream object. Everything that makes the document a document is preserved: all pages in order, fonts, images, the text layer (the cleaned PDF stays fully searchable and selectable), bookmarks, and hyperlinks. The file looks identical on screen and usually shrinks by a few kilobytes.
Two honest caveats. First, digital signatures: a signed PDF's signature covers the whole file, so any modification — including metadata removal — invalidates it. Only strip metadata from unsigned copies, or re-sign the cleaned file afterwards. Second, removal is one-way: the downloaded copy contains no trace of the old fields, which is the point, but it also means you should keep your original if you ever want that information back. The tool never overwrites your source file — the clean copy arrives with "-clean" in its name.
Server-based cleaners receive your whole document — the exact thing you're trying to keep private. This tool strips metadata with JavaScript running locally on your device. Your PDF never leaves your browser, so there is nothing to intercept, store or breach.
Most cleaners work blind and ask for trust. Here you get a field-by-field table of everything found in your file before a single byte is removed — visible proof of both the leak and the fix.
Upload-based tools ration you with megabyte limits and daily file counters because their servers cost money. There is no server here, so a 200-page report gets the same treatment as a one-page CV: strip as many files as you like.
Once the page loads, you can disconnect and keep cleaning. Sensitive documents from a client office, a court, or a newsroom — sanitized without the file ever touching a network.
Hidden descriptive data stored inside the file next to the visible pages: a standard block that can hold title, author, subject, keywords, creating software, producing software and timestamps, plus an optional XMP block in XML format. It never shows on the page, but anyone can read it in a PDF reader's properties panel.
Yes — it happens constantly. Word and Docs exports often set the author field to the computer account name, and the software fields advertise your exact tools and versions. Recruiters, reviewers and competitors do check these fields.
Removing descriptive metadata is safe — only the hidden info block is deleted, never page content. The one exception is digital signatures: any change invalidates a signature, so strip only unsigned copies or re-sign the cleaned file.
No. Only the info entries and the XMP stream are deleted. Pages, fonts, images, the text layer, bookmarks and links are untouched, so the cleaned PDF stays fully searchable and looks identical.
Not from the cleaned file — the metadata objects are deleted and no trace remains. The only surviving copies are ones you shared before cleaning, which is why you should strip before you send.
XMP is a second XML-formatted metadata block that Adobe tools embed, often duplicating author, title and software details. Basic cleaners miss it because it is a separate object. This tool checks the catalog for the XMP stream on every file and deletes it with the standard fields.
They are server tools: your file travels to their machine for processing, which forces upload caps — commonly a few megabytes per file or a daily file limit — and parks your document on their server. This tool processes in your browser, so there is nothing to cap and nothing to trust anyone with.
Yes. It's a web page, not installed software — any modern browser on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android or iOS runs it. Nothing to install, no admin rights, no updates to manage.
Strip hidden author/title/software data — see it first, 100% in your browser.
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