Search and remove text (Acrobat Pro)

Use the Find text or tools tool to find and remove words or phrases in one or more PDFs that contain searchable text.

Note:

The Find Text tool doesn’t search secured (encrypted) PDFs.

1. Open the PDF in Acrobat, and from the global bar do any of the following:
   • Choose Edit > Redact a PDF.
   • Select All tools > Redact a PDF. The Redact a PDF toolset is open on the left pane.
2. Select Find text and redact, and then choose OK on the message dialog that appears.
   
    

3. Find text and redact.

   1. In the Search dialog box, specify if you want to search the current PDF or all PDFs in another location.
   2. To search for a pattern (for example, phone numbers, credit card numbers, email addresses, social security numbers, or dates), click Patterns. Choose one of the available patterns.
   3. Click Search & Remove Text.
   4. In the search results, click the plus sign (+) next to the document name to see all occurrences of the word or phrase. Then, select the occurrences you want to mark for redaction:
      • To select all occurrences in the list, select Check All.
4. • To select individual occurrences, select the checkbox for each one you want to redact. Select the text next to a checkbox to view the occurrence on the page.
   • To mark none of the occurrences, close the Search dialog box or select New Search to start over.
   • Select the option under Redaction Mark Options to mark whole words or partial words (characters) for redaction. For partial words, select Mark Partial Word(s) For Redaction, the Settings dialog box appears. In the Settings dialog box, specify the number and location of the characters for redaction. Character redaction is helpful if you’re searching for a pattern, like credit card numbers, and want to leave part of the number visible for identification purposes.
5. If you selected occurrences that you want to mark for redaction, click Mark Checked Results For Redaction.

6. The items you selected in the list are shown marked for redaction.

   Note: If you haven’t saved the file, you can select redaction marks in the document and press Delete to remove the redaction mark. The redaction marks become permanent after you save the file.

7. To remove the marked items, select Apply on the left pane.
8. In the Apply redactions dialog, choose if you want to Sanitize and remove hidden information by selecting the toggle button, and then select Continue.
   
9. The items aren’t permanently removed from the document until you save it.
10. The Save As dialog is displayed. Specify a filename and location. The suffix “_Redacted” is appended to the filename. If you don’t want to overwrite the original file, save the file with a different name, at a different location, or both.