PDFBirdiePDFBirdie can't connect to the internet
No servers, no accounts, no analytics. Your Mac blocks PDFBirdie from going online, and you can check it yourself.Text recognition, redaction, compression, signing and every other feature run on your Mac. The one exception is optional AI, which is off unless you turn it on.
Why it can't connect
Your Mac only lets an app use the internet if the app was built with permission to. PDFBirdie wasn't, so it can't send or receive anything.Apps from the Mac App Store run in a sandbox. A sandboxed app can only use the network if it was signed with a network permission, and your Mac blocks every connection from an app that doesn't have one.
Check it yourself
- Look in PDFBirdie's settings. Choose PDFBirdie > Settings > General > Privacy.That screen reads the permissions your Mac enforces for the running app.
- Watch it in Activity Monitor. Open Activity Monitor, click Network, and find PDFBirdie while you work. It stays at zero.
- Read the App Store label. PDFBirdie's listing says Data Not Collected.
For technical readers
Read the app's entitlements in Terminal:
codesign -d --entitlements - /Applications/PDFBirdie.app
You'll see com.apple.security.app-sandbox, com.apple.security.files.user-selected.read-write (open and save only the files you pick) and com.apple.security.smartcard (CAC and PIV signing). You won't see com.apple.security.network.client or com.apple.security.network.server.
Watch live network use with nettop -p PDFBirdie. A firewall like LuLu or Little Snitch never asks about PDFBirdie.
The optional AI helper can be checked the same way. It has the network client entitlement and nothing that opens files, and it only connects to api.openai.com and api.anthropic.com:
codesign -d --entitlements - /Applications/PDFBirdie.app/Contents/XPCServices/PDFBirdieAIService.xpc
Why this matters for sensitive files
Online PDF tools ask you to upload your file to their servers. That's fine for a menu or a flyer. It's a bad idea for a contract, a medical record, a tax return or anything with someone's Social Security number in it.
With PDFBirdie, the file never leaves your Mac, so there's nothing to leak, log or keep.
Privacy built into the tools
- Metadata removed on every save. PDFBirdie strips the author, the app that made the file and the dates each time you save.This includes the hidden XMP data block. Remove PDF metadata
- Hidden scripts removed. Some PDFs carry hidden code. PDFBirdie drops it when you save.PDF JavaScript actions, like open actions and link scripts.
- Verified redaction. The text under each box is removed from the file, and PDFBirdie checks the result. Redacting a document also deletes its earlier saved versions. Redact PDFs
What stays on your Mac
| What | Where it's kept |
|---|---|
| Your documents | Wherever you keep them. PDFBirdie only opens files you choose. |
| Saved signatures | Your Keychain |
| Autofill details | PDFBirdie's own folder in your Library |
| Recent files and last page read | PDFBirdie's settings |
| Unsaved work, for crash recovery | PDFBirdie's own folder, deleted when you close the document |
| Earlier versions and activity logs | PDFBirdie's own folder. Turn off or delete them under Settings > General > History. Password-protected documents are never copied. |
Optional AI
PDFBirdie can summarize a document, answer questions about it and pull out data, using your own OpenAI or Anthropic account.You add an API key from that account under Settings > AI. Nothing else in PDFBirdie needs it, and it stays off until you turn it on under PDFBirdie > Settings > AI.
- PDFBirdie itself still can't connect. A separate helper inside the app handles AI requests, and it can only reach OpenAI or Anthropic.Your Mac starts the helper only when you use an AI feature.
- You choose what gets sent. Only the text of the document you're using the feature on goes to the provider you picked, with your key, under that provider's terms. Nothing is sent until you use a feature.
- Your key stays in your Keychain. It's only sent to its own provider. Remove it any time under Settings > AI.
- Turn AI off and it's gone. The menus disappear, and the helper never starts.
What about downloads and updates?
Downloads and updates go through the Mac App Store, outside PDFBirdie.