The whole Word document
Paragraphs, tables, and the headers and footers of every section go through the detection engine.
Word and PowerPoint anonymization
Anonymize Word and PowerPoint files, layout intact
NymData detects and anonymizes PII in body text, tables, headers, footers and speaker notes.
It is replaced directly in the file: styles, images and layout stay the same.
Processing stays on your servers.
Before: personal data highlighted in red
HR file · John Carter
Annual Performance Review
Review conducted by Sarah Mitchell with John Carter, project manager. Objectives met for the Chicago region.
Contact: (555) 013-2847 · [email protected]
The name also appears in the header of every page
After: text replaced, identical layout
HR file · [PERSON]
Annual Performance Review
Review conducted by [PERSON] with [PERSON], project manager. Objectives met for the Chicago region.
Contact: [PHONE] · [EMAIL]
Header, body and file properties processed
- Body text, tables, headers and footers
- Speaker notes
- Formatting preserved
- Author erased
How do you anonymize a Word document?
You need to process the whole document, not just the text you see on screen.
Tables, headers, footers and file properties often contain names.
With NymData, you select a document or a folder.
PII is anonymized directly in the file, with formatting preserved.
An audit report documents the run.
The trap
What "Find and Replace" misses
Replacing names by hand in Word or PowerPoint almost always leaves traces: spelling variants, forgotten phone numbers.
Above all, it misses areas nobody ever looks at:
- Headers and footers: the employee's or customer's name, repeated on every page.
- Speaker notes: invisible during the slideshow, but sent along with the file.
- File properties: the document author stays recorded.
Speaker notes
Call John Carter at (555) 013-2847 before the meeting.
What NymData does
An anonymized document that keeps its look
The whole presentation
Text boxes, tables and speaker notes on every slide are analyzed.
Formatting preserved
Only the sensitive text changes.
Styles, fonts, images and tables stay in place, even when a piece of data is split by a style change.
Your choice of method
A label ([PERSON]), a realistic fake name to keep the text natural, or a constant identifier. Compare the methods
Author erased
The author saved in the file properties is erased from the anonymized document.
Source file never modified
NymData creates an anonymized copy in a separate folder, on your servers.
An audit report documents the run.
Learn more: how NymData works, security and on-premises installation, anonymization vs. pseudonymization. In your industry: human resources, legal, manufacturing.
Use cases
When should you anonymize your documents?
- Human resources: reviews, employee files and letters sent to an outside firm, an attorney or an auditor.
- Legal: contracts, briefs and exhibits shared with a third party.
- Presentations: customer decks reused for training, demos or responding to an RFP.
- Archives: documents past their retention period, anonymized instead of deleted, thanks to scheduled processing.
Scope
What is processed in Word and PowerPoint
- SupportedWord (.docx)
- Body text, tables, headers and footers, file author. Formatting preserved.
- SupportedPowerPoint (.pptx)
- Text boxes, tables and speaker notes on every slide, file author.
- Original font preserved.
- SupportedFormatting
- Styles, fonts, images and tables stay in place: only the sensitive text changes.
- SupportedFile properties
- The author saved in the document or presentation is erased.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about anonymizing Word and PowerPoint documents
Is the Word document's formatting preserved?
Yes. NymData only changes the sensitive text: styles, images, tables and layout stay the same.
That holds even when a piece of data is split by a style change.
Are headers and footers anonymized?
Yes. In Word, the headers and footers of every section are analyzed and processed just like the body of the document.
Are PowerPoint speaker notes anonymized?
Yes. NymData analyzes the text boxes, tables and speaker notes on every slide.
The original font is preserved.
Is the document author erased?
Yes. The author saved in the Word or PowerPoint file properties is erased from the anonymized document.
Learn more
Related reading
FormatFormatProduct
PDF redaction
Why a black rectangle is not enough, and how to truly remove the information.
Excel and CSV anonymization
Every sheet, comments included, formulas and columns preserved.
Which method should you choose?
Anonymization, realistic pseudonymization, constant identifier: examples and use cases.
See NymData anonymize a folder of documents, live
A demo on a complete NymData installation, with sample documents.
Your files stay with you.