Redact a W-2 without uploading it.
A lender or a financial-aid office wants to confirm you earned what you said, not collect your Social Security number on the way. KeptPDF removes what you choose from a W-2 and permanently destroys the text, all in your browser. The form never leaves your device. Review the result before you send it.
A black box on box (a) still has the SSN underneath.
Most tools redact by drawing a rectangle. On a W-2 that means the Social Security number in box (a), the employer EIN, and the wage boxes are all still in the file, recoverable by moving the box or copying the text.
Real redaction destroys the digits in the form, so a covered SSN or wage figure cannot be brought back.
KeptPDF flattens each redacted page so nothing survives under the box, and it works in your browser, so the full W-2 is never uploaded to a server. You can verify it yourself in the network tab.
A filled rectangle just sits on top of the text. Move it, switch viewers, or copy the page, and the hidden content is back.
The page is flattened to an image, so the text underneath is destroyed. There is nothing left to uncover.
What a W-2 carries, and what gets removed
Auto-detect handles the identifiers across every copy of the form. The wage figures only you can judge are one click away.
The SSN in box (a)
Your Social Security number is flagged so you can black out all of it, or all but the last four where a recipient allows it.
Employer EIN and details
The employer identification number in box (b) and the employer name and address are detected so they do not travel on a copy.
Wages and amounts you choose
Wages, withholding, and the other boxed figures are a judgment call. Box any amount you want gone and it is permanently removed.
Your name and address
The employee name and address are surfaced for your review, so you decide how much identifying detail to keep.
How to redact a W-2
Three steps, entirely on your device. Permanent, verifiable, no upload.
Open your W-2
Drop your file onto the page or pick it from your device. It loads into your browser, and nothing is sent anywhere.
Mark what to redact
Auto-detect finds names, dates, Social Security numbers, account numbers, and more. Draw boxes over anything else you want gone.
Download the clean copy
Save it. The marked content is permanently gone: the page is flattened to an image, not hidden behind a box. Give the result a quick review before you share it.
Permanent removal, nothing uploaded.
True text destruction
Each redacted page is flattened to an image, so the text layer is gone, not just covered with a shape. Content under a redaction box cannot be copied, selected, or recovered. Review the result before you share it.
Auto-detect the obvious stuff
One pass finds names, dates, phone numbers, Social Security numbers, addresses, and emails across the whole W-2, so you are not hunting for each one by hand.
Never uploaded
There is no upload step. The W-2 is processed entirely in your browser, so the original is never part of a network request and never sits on anyone else's server.
Redaction certificate (Pro)
Pro adds a signed PDF and JSON audit record listing every redacted span, category, and page, which is handy for productions and compliance files. Anyone you send it to can re-check the fingerprint in their own browser, with nothing uploaded.
For anyone asked to prove income with a W-2
Mortgage and loan files, financial-aid and rental applications, and a new employer or preparer who needs the numbers but not your SSN.