Remove metadata from PDFs on Mac

What PDF metadata can give away

A PDF's metadata is information stored inside the file, apart from the pages you see.That's how a "final" contract can show the other side who drafted it, or how an anonymous report can carry its writer's name. It often includes:

• The author's name, usually taken from the computer or Office account that made the file
• The app that made it, like Microsoft Word or a scanner's software, sometimes with a version number
• When it was created and last changed
• A hidden block of extra details that can repeat all of the above, and sometimes moreThis is the XMP metadata packet. Design apps can store edit history in it.

How to see a PDF's metadata on Mac

You can check any PDF with Preview:

1. Open the PDF in Preview.
2. Choose Tools > Show Inspector, or press Command-I.
3. Look at the General information for the author, the app that made it and the dates.

In PDFBirdie, choose File > Document Details to see the title, author, subject and keywords, along with facts about the file.

How to remove metadata in PDFBirdie (free)

1. Open the PDF in PDFBirdie.
2. Choose File > Save a Copy (Shift-Command-S) and save it under a new name. Or make any change and save.
3. That's it. The saved file no longer has the identifying metadata.

When you save, PDFBirdie removes:

• The author
• The app that made the file and the app that wrote the PDF
• The creation and change dates
• The hidden block of extra detailsThe XMP metadata packet.
• Any hidden scriptsPDF JavaScript, like open actions and link scripts.

PDFBirdie keeps the title, subject and keywords, since those help people find and read the file. If you want an author on the file, add one yourself under File > Document Details and PDFBirdie keeps it.

If the PDF has a password, PDFBirdie removes the title, subject and keywords as well.

Remove metadata from many PDFs at once

Any batch action in PDFBirdie, like compressing or adding Bates numbers to a folder of files, saves new copies with the metadata removed too.

Metadata and redaction: why you need both

Redaction removes words from the pages. Metadata lives outside the pages, so a redacted file can still carry a name in its author field. PDFBirdie handles both: redaction clears the pages, and every save clears the metadata. Redact PDFs

Why not use a website?

Online metadata removers ask you to upload the file to clean it. If the file is private enough that you want its metadata gone, it's private enough to keep off someone else's server. PDFBirdie can't connect to the internet at all. See the proof