# redactor
[](https://crates.io/crates/redactor)
[](https://docs.rs/redactor)
[](https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT)
A PDF redaction library and CLI tool with secure text removal using MuPDF. Redacts Verizon bills so you can expense them without leaking your call metadata.
## Use Case
Originally built for redacting **Verizon phone bills** before submitting them to employer expense reimbursement systems like **Concur**, or **Expensify**.
When submitting phone bills for work expense reimbursement, you typically need to:
- ✅ Keep the billing amounts visible (for verification)
- ❌ Remove your account number (privacy/security)
- ❌ Remove personal phone numbers (privacy)
- ❌ Remove call detail information (times, locations, destinations)
- ❌ Remove other personal contact information
This tool ensures your sensitive information is **physically removed** from the PDF (not just blacked out), so it cannot be extracted by the expense system or anyone who views the document.
**Perfect for**: Freelancers, remote workers, and employees who need to submit redacted bills for work expenses while maintaining privacy.
## Features
- **Secure Redaction**: Physically removes text from PDFs (not just visual overlay)
- **Type3 Font Support**: Handles complex PDF encodings via MuPDF
- **Phone Number Detection**: Automatic NANP phone number redaction
- **Verizon Account Numbers**: Specialized detection for 9-5 format accounts
- **Call Detail Redaction**: Automatically redacts time, origination, and destination columns
- **Pattern Matching**: Literal strings and regex patterns
- **CLI & Library**: Use as a command-line tool or Rust library
## Installation
### As a CLI Tool
```bash
cargo install redactor
```
### As a Library
Add to your `Cargo.toml`:
```toml
[dependencies]
redactor = "0.2"
```
## Quick Start
### CLI Usage
#### Redact Verizon Bill for Expense Report
```bash
# Redact account number, phone numbers, and call details (recommended for expense reports)
redactor --input verizon-bill.pdf --output for-concur.pdf --verizon
```
This command will:
1. Find and remove your Verizon account number (e.g., `123456789-00001`)
2. Remove all phone numbers from the document
3. Remove call detail information (times like "10:26 PM", locations, destinations)
4. Preserve billing amounts and other expense-relevant information
#### Other Common Uses
```bash
# Redact only phone numbers
redactor --input document.pdf --output redacted.pdf --phones
# Redact custom patterns (e.g., email addresses)
redactor --input doc.pdf --output out.pdf --pattern "your.email@example.com"
# Extract text to verify what's in the PDF
redactor extract --input document.pdf --output text.txt
```
### Library Usage
```rust
use redactor::{RedactionService, RedactionTarget};
use std::path::Path;
fn main() -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
let service = RedactionService::with_secure_strategy();
service.redact(
Path::new("input.pdf"),
Path::new("output.pdf"),
&[RedactionTarget::PhoneNumbers]
)?;
Ok(())
}
```
## Security
This library uses MuPDF's built-in redaction system to **physically remove** text from PDFs, making it unextractable. This is more secure than visual-only redaction methods that just draw black boxes over text.
### Why This Matters for Expense Reports
Many expense systems (Concur, Expensify, etc.) can extract text from PDFs for automated processing. Simple "black box" redaction doesn't actually remove the text - it's still embedded in the PDF and can be extracted. This tool ensures your account numbers and personal phone numbers are truly gone before you submit to your employer.
### Verification
```bash
# After redaction, verify text is gone
redactor extract --input redacted.pdf
# Your account number and phone numbers should NOT appear in output
```
## Supported Patterns
### Phone Numbers (NANP)
- `(555) 123-4567`
- `555-987-6543`
- `555.111.2222`
- `+1 555 234 5678`
### Verizon Accounts
- `123456789-00001` (9-5 format)
- `12345678900001` (14 digits)
- Context-aware detection
### Custom Patterns
- Literal strings
- Regular expressions
- Multiple patterns per run
## Command Reference
### Default Mode: Redaction
```bash
redactor [OPTIONS] --input <FILE> --output <FILE>
Options:
-i, --input <FILE> Input PDF file
-o, --output <FILE> Output PDF file
-p, --pattern <TEXT> Pattern to redact (repeatable)
--phones Redact phone numbers
--verizon Redact Verizon account + phones + call details
--all Redact all text
-v, --verbose Verbose output
```
### Extract Subcommand
```bash
redactor extract --input <FILE> [--output <FILE>]
Options:
-i, --input <FILE> Input PDF file
-o, --output <FILE> Output text file (stdout if omitted)
```
## Examples
### Expense Report Workflow
```bash
# 1. Download your Verizon bill (e.g., January-2026.pdf)
# 2. Redact sensitive information
redactor --input January-2026.pdf --output January-2026-redacted.pdf --verizon
# 3. (Optional) Verify redaction by extracting text
redactor extract --input January-2026-redacted.pdf
# Your account number and phone numbers should NOT appear in the output
# 4. Upload January-2026-redacted.pdf to Concur/Expensify
```
### Redact Multiple Pattern Types
```bash
redactor \
--input sensitive.pdf \
--output clean.pdf \
--phones \
--pattern "SSN: [0-9-]+" \
--pattern "CONFIDENTIAL"
```
### Library: Custom Redaction Strategy
```rust
use redactor::{RedactionService, RedactionTarget, SecureRedactionStrategy};
let service = RedactionService::new(
SecureRedactionStrategy::new()
.with_verbose(true)
.with_max_hits(500)
);
service.redact(input, output, &targets)?;
```
### Library: Pattern Matching
```rust
use redactor::domain::{PhoneNumberMatcher, PatternMatcher};
let matcher = PhoneNumberMatcher::new();
let phones = matcher.extract_all("Call (555) 234-5678 or 555-987-6543");
// phones: ["(555) 234-5678", "555-987-6543"]
```
## Performance
- **Unit tests**: <0.1s (15+ tests)
- **Integration tests**: ~0.5s (10+ tests)
- **Full test suite**: <2s (30+ tests)
- **Redaction**: ~50-80ms per page (typical)
## Architecture
```
redactor/
├── src/
│ ├── domain/ # Business logic (phone, account detection)
│ ├── redaction/ # Redaction strategies (secure, visual)
│ ├── error.rs # Custom error types
│ ├── lib.rs # Library API
│ └── main.rs # CLI application
└── tests/
├── common/ # Shared test utilities
├── unit/ # Fast unit tests
├── integration_test.rs
└── cli_integration_test.rs
```
## Development
### Prerequisites
- Rust 1.70+
- MuPDF development libraries
### Building
```bash
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/redactor
cd redactor
cargo build --release
```
### Testing
```bash
# All tests
cargo test
# Specific test suite
cargo test --test integration_test
# With output
cargo test -- --nocapture
```
### Linting
```bash
cargo clippy --all-targets --all-features
cargo fmt --check
```
## Limitations
- Requires MuPDF system libraries
- Best results with standard PDF fonts
- Complex annotations may require additional handling
- Scanned PDFs (images) require OCR preprocessing
## Contributing
Contributions welcome! Please:
1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Add tests for new functionality
4. Ensure all tests pass
5. Submit a pull request
## License
MIT License - see [LICENSE-MIT](LICENSE-MIT) for details.
## Acknowledgments
- [MuPDF](https://mupdf.com/) for PDF processing
- [lopdf](https://github.com/J-F-Liu/lopdf) for PDF manipulation
- [pdf-extract](https://github.com/jrmuizel/pdf-extract) for text extraction
## Security Notice
This tool is designed for legitimate redaction purposes. Users are responsible for:
- Verifying redaction completeness
- Complying with applicable laws and regulations
- Testing output before distribution
- Understanding PDF structure limitations
Always verify redacted PDFs before sharing sensitive documents.