How to black out a PDF
1. Drop one PDF you already have. Pictures and audio are refused here. 2. Drag on the preview to draw a cover, or press Middle band, Top band or Bottom band. 3. Leave Black, or pick White when the page is already dark. 4. Leave Every page, or choose First page only. 5. Press “Black out PDF” and open the download.
People also search for this as redact PDF. GustKit draws an opaque rectangle with pdf-lib. It does not delete the words stored under the box. A reader sees the cover. Copying text, or removing the drawing in another editor, can still reveal what was underneath.
A cover is not the same as deleting the page
Delete PDF pages removes a whole page. Crop PDF cuts the page down to a frame. This page keeps the page size and paints a rectangle on top. Watermark PDF stamps words you can still see through. Use a cover when a name, a number or a signature should not show in the reader.
The PDF stays in this tab
pdf-lib loads in this tab and writes the rectangles into the file you download. The original text layer is not rewritten. Password-protected PDFs must be unlocked first. GustKit does not fetch a PDF from a link.
How to check the cover before you send the PDF
1. Open the download and look at the band you covered. The page size should match the original. 2. Try to select text in that band. If the words still copy, the cover is only paint. 3. If a name still shows at the edge, draw a wider box and run again.
Black is the cover for a light page. White is for a dark page. Every page uses the same boxes. Delete PDF pages is the tool that removes a whole page. Nothing is uploaded.