Redact a tax return without uploading it.
A return is a full map of someone's finances: SSNs, income, dependents, and the bank account a refund lands in. KeptPDF removes what you choose and permanently destroys the text, all in your browser. The return never leaves your device. Review the result before you share it.
A black box on a 1040 still has the SSN underneath.
Most tools redact by drawing a rectangle. On a tax return that means the Social Security number, the income, and the account details are all still in the file, recoverable by moving the box or copying the text. That is not what you want on a document like this.
Real redaction destroys the data in the return, so a covered SSN or income 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 return 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 return exposes, and what gets removed
Auto-detect handles the identifiers. The dollar figures only you can judge are one click away from permanent removal.
SSNs, ITINs, and EINs
Taxpayer and dependent SSNs, ITINs, and employer EINs are detected across every schedule and flagged for your review.
Bank account and routing numbers
The direct-deposit and direct-debit fields carry account and routing numbers. Auto-detect surfaces them so they do not ride along.
Income and amounts you choose
Wages, AGI, and other figures are a judgment call, not automatic PII. Box any amount you want gone and it is permanently removed.
Names, addresses, and dependents
Names, the home address, and dependent details are flagged too, so you decide how much of the household to remove.
How to redact a tax return
Three steps, entirely on your device. Permanent, verifiable, no upload.
Open your return
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 return, so you are not hunting for each one by hand.
Never uploaded
There is no upload step. The return 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 preparers and for anyone asked to hand over a return
Accountants sharing a redacted copy, plus loan, financial-aid, and immigration files that ask for a return but not your whole financial life.