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Famous PDF Redaction Failures and What We Can Learn From Them

TaxRedact Team
| | 6 min read

PDF redaction failures don’t just expose data—they make headlines, end careers, and sometimes change history. Here are some of the most notable cases where “redacted” documents weren’t actually redacted at all.

The Paul Manafort Court Filing (2019)

Perhaps the most famous redaction failure in recent memory.

What Happened

Lawyers for Paul Manafort, former Trump campaign chairman, filed a court document in January 2019. The filing contained black boxes covering sensitive information about Manafort’s business dealings and contacts.

Within hours of the filing becoming public, reporters discovered the redactions were fake. By simply selecting the text and copying it, they could read everything underneath the black boxes.

What Was Exposed

The “redacted” sections revealed that Manafort had shared Trump campaign polling data with Konstantin Kilimnik, a Ukrainian businessman with alleged ties to Russian intelligence. This detail became a central focus of investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

The Impact

The revelation generated massive news coverage and provided new evidence for ongoing investigations. It also led to widespread mockery of the legal team’s technical incompetence.

The Lesson

Even experienced lawyers at major firms can make this mistake. Always verify redactions with the copy-paste test before filing or sharing documents.

TSA Screening Procedures Leak (2009)

The Transportation Security Administration learned a painful lesson about PDF redaction.

What Happened

In an effort at transparency, the TSA published its Standard Operating Procedures manual online. The document contained numerous redactions covering security-sensitive information.

The redactions were nothing but black boxes drawn over text.

What Was Exposed

  • Checkpoint screening procedures
  • Categories of people exempt from screening
  • Instructions for handling diplomatic pouches
  • Details about screening technologies and their limitations
  • Information about identifying potential threats

The Impact

The exposed procedures potentially compromised airport security nationwide. The TSA had to revise procedures and retrain staff. The incident sparked a Congressional investigation and led to new document handling policies.

The Lesson

Government agencies handle sensitive information daily. Without proper training on document redaction, even well-intentioned transparency efforts can backfire catastrophically.

AT&T NSA Surveillance Documents (2006)

Whistleblower documents revealed more than intended.

What Happened

In a lawsuit about NSA surveillance, AT&T submitted documents with redactions covering classified information about their cooperation with government surveillance programs.

The redactions were easily bypassed.

What Was Exposed

Details about AT&T’s secret room in San Francisco where NSA equipment was installed to monitor internet traffic. Technical specifications of surveillance equipment and the scope of data collection.

The Impact

The revelations fueled the ongoing debate about government surveillance and corporate cooperation with intelligence agencies. The case eventually led to legal protections for telecommunications companies that cooperated with surveillance programs.

Boeing Starliner Safety Reports (2020)

Safety first—unless you can’t properly redact.

What Happened

Following issues with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, internal safety reports were released under FOIA requests. The documents contained redacted sections ostensibly covering proprietary information.

What Was Exposed

Internal concerns about safety procedures, quality control issues, and communication problems between Boeing teams. The “redacted” information painted a more concerning picture than the visible text suggested.

The Lesson

Organizations facing scrutiny should assume their redacted documents will be examined for redaction failures. Proper redaction isn’t just about privacy—it’s about controlling your narrative.

University Research Grant Applications

Academic institutions aren’t immune to redaction failures.

What Happened (Multiple Incidents)

Universities frequently release research grant applications under FOIA or state transparency laws, with budget details and personnel information redacted. Multiple incidents have occurred where these redactions failed.

What Was Exposed

  • Researcher salaries (often above what universities publicly disclose)
  • Budget padding and overhead calculations
  • Names of personnel who requested anonymity
  • Proprietary research methodologies

The Lesson

Even organizations that handle sensitive information daily can fail at basic document security. Training and verification processes are essential.

Court Documents Across America

Redaction failures in legal filings are surprisingly common.

Common Exposures Include:

  • Social Security numbers of crime victims
  • Home addresses of protected witnesses
  • Financial information in divorce proceedings
  • Medical records in personal injury cases
  • Trade secrets in business litigation

Why It Keeps Happening

  • Lawyers aren’t trained in document technology
  • Time pressure leads to shortcuts
  • Court filing systems don’t verify redactions
  • Old habits (like using a marker on paper) don’t translate to digital

What All These Failures Have in Common

Every case above shares the same root cause: treating visual concealment as data removal.

When you cover text with a black box, you’re adding a layer on top of the document. The original text remains in the file’s content stream, completely intact and extractable.

The Technical Reality

A PDF contains multiple layers:

  1. Content stream — Where actual text lives
  2. Annotations — Where your black boxes live
  3. Metadata — Document properties

Drawing a rectangle creates an annotation. True redaction modifies the content stream, permanently removing the text characters.

How to Avoid Being the Next Headline

1. Use Proper Redaction Tools

Use software specifically designed for redaction that removes text from the content stream:

  • Adobe Acrobat Pro’s dedicated Redaction tool (not the drawing tools)
  • TaxRedact for AI-powered sensitive data detection and removal
  • Specialized legal/government redaction software

2. Verify Before Sharing

Always test your redacted documents:

  • Select all text and copy-paste
  • Search for words that should be redacted
  • Use pdftotext to extract raw text
  • Check file size (should decrease after true redaction)

3. Train Your Team

Anyone who handles sensitive documents needs to understand:

  • The difference between covering and removing data
  • How to properly use redaction tools
  • How to verify redactions before sharing

4. Implement Review Processes

For high-stakes documents:

  • Have a second person verify redactions
  • Use automated redaction verification tools
  • Maintain audit trails of who redacted what

The Stakes Are Real

Redaction failures have:

  • Exposed national security information
  • Compromised ongoing investigations
  • Revealed protected identities
  • Caused significant financial and reputational damage
  • Changed the course of legal proceedings

Don’t let a simple technical oversight put you on this list.

Protect your documents with true redaction. TaxRedact uses AI to find sensitive data and permanently removes it from your PDFs—not just covers it up.