Copy and search
- Open the downloaded final PDF in a standard viewer.
- Search for known sensitive strings: client names, emails, phone numbers, account numbers, matter IDs.
- Select text near redacted areas and attempt copy/paste. Recoverable text indicates incomplete redaction.
Structure and duplicates
- Review headers, footers, page numbers, and repeating table rows for identifiers that appear elsewhere unredacted.
- Confirm there are no appended pages, attachments, or alternate versions inside the packet that bypass redaction.
Metadata and hidden content
- Confirm the workflow finalize step stripped metadata (author, XMP, JavaScript, embedded files where applicable).
- If the source was scanned, confirm OCR ran before redaction and that newly searchable text was also redacted.
Certificate
- Compare the exported file SHA-256 to the fingerprint on the redaction certificate.
- Keep the certificate with your matter file for audit response. It records workflow metadata and output integrity, not redaction completeness.