PDF PII Scanner

Scan a PDF or document for personal data such as email addresses, phone numbers, National Insurance numbers, bank details and card numbers before you share it.

Reviewed by Dany, RightSums team · Updated

Files are processed in memory and never stored.

compliance · Business · UK & US

Upload a PDF, Word file, spreadsheet, text file or photo and the scanner checks every page against 14 patterns. It looks for email addresses, phone numbers, UK National Insurance numbers, US Social Security numbers, payment card numbers, IBANs, UK sort codes and account numbers, US routing numbers, dates of birth, passport and driving licence numbers, US EIN and ITIN numbers, UK postcodes and IP addresses. Card numbers are checked with the Luhn algorithm and IBANs with their check digits to cut false alarms. Each finding shows its page, how many times it appears, a High or Medium risk rating and advice on what to do. ID, card and bank numbers are masked to the last four characters in the report. The scanner does not edit your file. Export the findings to Excel.

Accepted inputs

  • PDF
  • Word (.docx)
  • Excel (.xlsx)
  • CSV
  • Text (.txt)
  • Photos (JPG, PNG)

Outputs

  • PII findings report
  • Excel (.xlsx)

How to use the PDF PII Scanner

  1. Upload the PDF or document you plan to share.
  2. The text on each page is checked against 14 patterns for personal and financial identifiers.
  3. Card numbers and IBANs are validated with their checksums, and each finding is rated High or Medium risk.
  4. Review the findings by page, remove or redact them in your own editor, and export the report to Excel.

Frequently asked questions

How do I check a PDF for personal data before sharing it?

Upload the PDF and the scanner lists every piece of personal data it finds, with the type, page number, number of times it appears and a risk rating. Use that list to redact the document in your PDF editor before you send it.

What types of personal information does it detect?

Email addresses, phone numbers, UK National Insurance numbers, US Social Security numbers, card numbers, IBANs, UK sort codes and account numbers, US routing numbers, dates of birth, passport and driving licence numbers, US EIN and ITIN numbers, UK postcodes and IP addresses.

Does it redact the PDF for me?

No. It produces a report of what it found and where, with advice for each item, but it does not change your file. Use a PDF editor with a true redaction feature to remove the text, as drawing a black box over it may leave the text underneath.

How accurate is the PII scan?

It uses pattern matching, so it finds data in standard formats well but can miss unusual layouts, and it does not detect names or street addresses without a postcode. Card numbers and IBANs are checksum-validated to reduce false positives. Always follow up with a human review.

Is my document stored when I scan it?

No. The file is uploaded to our server, scanned in memory and not saved. In the report, ID, card and bank numbers are masked to their last four characters. Email addresses, phone numbers, postcodes, IP addresses and dates of birth are shown in full so you can find them.

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