Getting Started with CloviRedact¶
CloviRedact detects and removes personally identifiable information (PII) from PDFs, Word files, spreadsheets, and plain text. It is built for legal, HR, healthcare, and data teams that need defensible, auditable redaction without sending sensitive documents to third-party storage.
What This Tool Does¶
CloviRedact scans documents for 17+ PII categories — names, email addresses, phone numbers, Social Security Numbers, medical record numbers, bank account identifiers, and more — then replaces each item with a typed label such as [PERSON] or [EMAIL_ADDRESS]. Files are processed in memory and purged within 60 seconds. Every paid plan includes a structured audit log recording what was found, where, and at what confidence level, giving you the documentation trail regulators and auditors require.
Quick Start¶
- Create your account. Register with your email and choose a plan. The Free plan requires no credit card and activates immediately.
- Upload a document. Drag a PDF, DOCX, TXT, or XLSX file onto the dashboard upload zone. Processing starts automatically.
- Download the redacted file. When complete, a download button appears with a detection summary (for example, "23 PII entities removed"). The file is available for 15 minutes, then deleted. Pro and above accounts retain the full audit log for every job.
Core Features¶
AI-Powered PII Detection¶
CloviRedact runs three detection methods at once: a language model for names, organizations, and locations; pattern matching for structured identifiers such as SSNs, IBANs, and credit card numbers; and a contextual scoring layer that checks surrounding words to reduce false positives. Accuracy across legal, healthcare, HR, and financial document benchmarks is 99.2%. Every detection carries a confidence score so reviewers can focus on borderline cases.
Format Support with Layout Preservation¶
PDF redaction marks are drawn as filled rectangles at the exact coordinates of each detected item, leaving layout, fonts, and page geometry intact. DOCX files are processed at the XML level so styles, tables, and footers survive unchanged. XLSX files are handled cell by cell. TXT content can be submitted as a direct string via the API without a file upload.
Audit Logs and Compliance Reports¶
Pro and above log every detection event: entity type, character position, page number, confidence score, replacement label, and which user or API key triggered the job. Logs export as CSV or JSON. Team accounts generate one-click compliance reports — a GDPR Article 25 data minimization record or a HIPAA Safe Harbor attestation — for submission to regulators, IRBs, or external auditors.
REST API and SDKs¶
Pro accounts include API access with a Python SDK and a JavaScript/Node client. Two endpoints cover every workflow: POST /api/anonymize for raw text and POST /api/document for file uploads with batch support (100 docs/call on Pro, 500 on Team). Large documents stream real-time progress. Batch jobs post a webhook callback when complete.
Custom PII Types¶
Team accounts define additional detection patterns using regular expressions — for example, employee IDs or internal case numbers specific to your organization. Each custom type gets a label name and optional context words to filter false matches. Custom types apply automatically to all subsequent jobs on your account.
Tips for Best Results¶
- Review low-confidence detections. Audit entries with a score below 0.7 are worth a human check. Ambiguous first names and non-standard phone formats are the most common near-misses.
- Use batch mode for volume. The batch API handles multi-document jobs in one call and fires a single webhook on completion.
- Download within 15 minutes. Files are deleted after the window expires. Use a webhook to capture download URLs automatically.
- Define custom types before a large batch. Patterns apply only to jobs submitted after they are saved. Configure them in Settings first.
- Use test API keys during development. Keys prefixed
cr_test_run full detection without consuming your monthly quota or writing audit log entries.
Frequently Asked Questions¶
Does CloviRedact store my documents? No. Documents are processed in memory and never written to disk. The redacted output is available at a time-limited URL for 15 minutes, then automatically purged. Audit logs record detection metadata only — never the original PII values.
What file formats are supported? PDF, DOCX, TXT, and XLSX on Pro and above. Free accepts TXT only. Starter adds PDF and DOCX. OCR for scanned PDFs is available on Enterprise.
What happens when I hit my document limit? On Free, processing stops at 10 documents. On Starter, email alerts fire at 80% and 100% of the 100-document limit. Overage is never charged automatically. Pro and above have no document cap.
Can I run CloviRedact on my own servers? Yes. The core engine is MIT-licensed and deployable via Docker in under five minutes, at no cost. The Enterprise plan adds managed deployment, a service level agreement, and compliance review support.
How do I integrate CloviRedact into a pipeline? Use the REST API with the Python or JavaScript/Node SDK, or the community node for the n8n automation platform. Webhook callbacks trigger downstream actions — archiving, notifications, database writes — as soon as processing finishes.
Usage Limits by Plan¶
| Feature | Free | Starter | Pro | Team | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Documents/month | 10 | 100 | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Max file size | 5 MB | 25 MB | 100 MB | 500 MB | Custom |
| Formats | TXT | PDF, DOCX, TXT | + XLSX | + XLSX | + OCR |
| REST API | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Batch processing | No | No | 100/call | 500/call | Custom |
| Audit logs | No | No | 90 days | Indefinite | Custom |
| Compliance reports | No | No | No | GDPR + HIPAA | Custom |
| Custom PII types | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| User seats | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | Unlimited |
| Monthly price | $0 | $29 | $79 | $149 | Contact sales |