GDPR subject access request redaction, on your Mac
When someone makes a subject access request (a SAR or DSAR) under the UK GDPR, you usually have one month to send them their personal data, with other people's details taken out. Sanipage's Redaction mode removes the third-party names and details you pick from Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF files, everywhere they appear, and checks nothing is left behind before you release them. It works the same for a disclosure or any file shared with another party.
Redact third-party data: you pick, nothing is guessed
Nothing is redacted until you pick it on the file card. Sanipage lists the names, emails, phone numbers and addresses it finds, and each one you pick is redacted in every document of the request. The person who asked never has their own details offered, so their data stays in.
DSAR redaction that is gone, not just covered
- Word: tracked changes accepted and comments removed first, so nothing hides underneath
- Word, Excel and PowerPoint: author and document properties emptied
- PDFs with text: the text under each box is removed, not just covered with black
- Every file is read back to check that nothing you picked can still be found
A redaction log for your records
Approved files go to their own Redacted folder, never to an AI, with a log of what was redacted and how often, so you can show your working if the request is challenged. Redaction is for good: there is no restore.
Private by design
Everything happens on your Mac. No document, name or file name is ever sent to us, so the request's personal data never leaves your computer.
How to start a subject access request
Create a project in Sanipage, tick Redaction and type the name of the person who asked. Drop the documents into its Input folder and pick what to redact on each file card.
Questions
What has to be redacted in a subject access request?
The requester has a right to their own personal data, but not usually to other people's. Names, emails, phone numbers and addresses of third parties, such as colleagues, witnesses or other customers, are often redacted unless they agreed or it is reasonable to share them. The ICO's guidance on the right of access explains when. Sanipage does the redacting; the decision on what goes stays with you.
Is the redaction permanent?
Yes. The text is removed, not covered with a box, and every file is checked before you approve it.
Which file types can it redact?
Word (.docx), Excel (.xlsx), PowerPoint (.pptx) and PDFs that have a text layer. Scanned pages and pictures are stopped and flagged, because there is no text to remove.