Burn and save · Autessa Redact
Permanent redaction
Autessa Redact makes permanent redactions. When you burn, every page is flattened so nothing under a box survives, and a searchable text layer is rebuilt from only what is left. The redacted text is removed from the file, not hidden behind a black rectangle that someone could lift off or copy out.
Borrower Kenji Watanabe SSN 078-05-1120
copy/paste → “Kenji Watanabe 078-05-1120”
A black shape over live text
Borrower SSN
copy/paste → “Borrower SSN”
Flattened, text layer rebuilt
The problem
The black box that is not really a redaction
Drawing a black shape over text in a PDF, or highlighting it black in Word, leaves the words in the file, where copy and paste or a search will find them. Redact removes the content under each box and rebuilds the page from what remains.
- The output is always a PDF, named <name>_redacted.pdf by default.
- Every page is flattened, so text, images and drawings under a box are gone.
- A searchable text layer is rebuilt from the text that is left, so the redacted file is still searchable and copyable.
- Boxes burn as plain black, or with their labels printed in white.
- Rejected suggestions are left out, and the confirmation says how many redactions will burn.
- If nothing is marked, Redact warns you that the saved file will match the original.
- Once burning starts the file is locked, so nothing can change mid-burn.
How it works
How does permanent redaction work in Autessa Redact?
Decide every suggestion
Burn and save opens once no AI suggestions are pending.
Confirm what will burn
The dialog says how many redactions will be burned, whether labels are printed and whether links are removed.
Choose where it goes
Pick a Drive and folder and name the file.
Save here
Redact burns the redactions in and saves the PDF. The status reads Saved to Drive.
Every option
Burn options
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Show labels on the burned file | Print each box’s label in white; otherwise boxes are plain black. |
| Break all links | Remove every hyperlink in the document. |
| File name | Defaults to <name>_redacted.pdf; .pdf is added if missing. |
| Drive and folder | Any Drive and folder you can write to. |
Permissions
Who can do what?
| Who | Can |
|---|---|
| Members with the Redact permission | Burn and save files they uploaded, to Drives they can write to. |
| People the Drive folder is shared with | Open the burned PDF, which no longer contains the redacted content. |
FAQ
Questions about permanent redaction
How do I permanently redact a PDF?
Mark what to hide in Autessa Redact and click Burn and save. Every page is flattened so nothing under a box survives, and the redacted PDF is saved to Drive.
Can someone recover text from under a Redact box?
No. The content under each box is removed when the page is flattened, and the rebuilt text layer contains only what was left.
Is the redacted PDF still searchable?
Yes. Redact rebuilds a searchable text layer from the text that remains after redaction.
Can I burn a Word file?
Yes. Redact turns it into a page-accurate PDF to review, and the burned output is a PDF.
100% customizable, code and all
Make Autessa Redact fully your own.
Use it out of the box, then change anything. Ask Autobot, Autessa’s AI builder, for a new field, screen, report, workflow or agent and it builds it into your copy of the app. Or open the code and edit it yourself. Nothing is locked: the app, its data and its code are yours.
Start free and make it yours