Document Redaction Services

What Are Redaction Services? Preserving Confidentiality and Security

Document redaction refers to the selective removal of sensitive or confidential information (that can personally identify an individual) from publicly viewable records to protect privacy and ensure compliance.

It protects sensitive information beyond just covering it up or blacking it out. Automated document redaction technology works by restricting the visibility of temporarily redacted information only to users with the required security clearance. Permanent redaction involves the deletion of sensitive information from the digital file. It even removes PII contained in metadata or image headers.

Any organization that collects, processes or stores sensitive PII is legally bound to redact confidential information to prevent it from public view.

Although redaction regulations may vary from state to state, some commonly redacted data types include:

• Dates of Birth (DOB)

• Social Security Numbers (SSN)

• Drivers License Numbers (DL)

• Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)

• Banking and financial information like account numbers

• Medical or psychiatric records and other HIPAA-governed medical information

• Criminal ID numbers

RDS offers both automated and manual redaction services, depending on your requirements.

While we rely on automated redaction for bulk processing, there are some cases where software simply cannot accurately redact sensitive information—for example, historical records, handwritten deeds, and old or illegible papers.

That's when we rely on a combination of OCR software and our team of highly skilled manual operators to validate that every document is appropriately redacted.

Cross-Industry Solutions: How Redaction Benefits Various Sectors

Document redaction brings valuable benefits to a wide range of industries. It is especially useful for enterprises that must adhere to strict data privacy and information protection regulations, such as the GDPR and HIPAA.

Companies that don't comply with mandatory regulations or disclose confidential information (intentionally or inadvertently) risk financial penalties, reputational damage, and even a consequent loss of business.

• Document redaction for government records: Government agencies and municipal offices hold citizen records with highly sensitive PII. Publicly viewable records must be redacted to protect PII. For example, according to the new bill AB 1466 passed in 2021, all California county recorders must redact historical instances of discriminatory or restrictive covenant language from property records. Considering the high volume of records this bill covers, California counties will need automated, and highly reliable redaction services for this project.

• Redaction services for healthcare institutions: Every healthcare provider collects patient information, including name, address, medical history, insurance policy details, billing information, and prescription information. HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) protects patient information by regulating how healthcare providers process, store, and share patient information. With strict policies and penalties for non-compliance, it becomes vital for healthcare providers to use document redaction services to safeguard PII from publicly available medical records or EMRs.

• Document redaction for legal documents: Legal professionals and law enforcement agencies must comply with CJIS compliance requirements. Document redaction solutions help them block PII from public view for sensitive legal documents or intelligence data. Redaction plays an invaluable role in maintaining client confidentiality and supporting paperless processes for remote court proceedings and digital arbitration services for dispute resolution.

• Redaction for educational records: Schools maintain detailed student records that are protected by regulatory compliance norms. While student records such as transcripts, exam results, and course schedules need to be made easily accessible and shareable, any information that can identify a student is still regulated and must be redacted from public view.

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