Datenmaske Secure · Manual

From download to redaction — the whole product, explained.

Every step and every setting of Datenmaske Secure, in one place. Nothing leaves your machine at any point — installation, detection and export all run locally.

From download to your first redaction takes about ten minutes: run the installer, paste the key, drop in a PDF.

Guided quick start

Redact a PDF safely — in three visible steps.

Watch each step with a sample first, then repeat it with your own file. The silent films use test data only.

Important: highlights are suggestions, not completed redactions. Review every finding before exporting.

01 · Open & detect

Open the PDF locally

Drop the file into the library. Digital PDFs are read directly; scanned pages use local text recognition when needed.

02 · Review & decide

Check suggestions

Accept or reject findings. If something is missing, draw the area directly in the document.

03 · Export permanently

Verify the result

Export permanently removes accepted content and checks the output again. A gap stops the export.

Watch the demo films →

Download & installation

Requirements

Windows 10 or 11. No cloud account, no server — the app runs entirely on your workstation.

Installer

You receive the download link with your Early-Access confirmation. Run the MSI installer; it sets up the app plus the Windows integration.

First start

On first launch the signed recognition models are downloaded once and verified (Ed25519, SHA-256 per model). After that everything works offline.

Download →

Activating your license

The 7-day test license

Your confirmation email contains the license key. In the app: “Lizenzschlüssel eingeben” → paste the key. The key is verified locally — no network, no account needed.

After the test week

The license simply expires; documents already exported stay redacted. We will talk about the full license with you directly.

No key yet? Request a test license →

The workflow

Scan

Drag any PDF into the window (or right-click in Explorer → “Schwärzen mit Datenmaske”). Three detection engines run locally: regex (IBAN, e-mail, phone), NER (names, addresses), gazetteer (doctors, firms).

Review

Every suggestion, one decision: accept or reject. Missed spots you mark yourself — the rectangle you draw is redacted like any finding.

Export

MuPDF physically removes the confirmed content, the result is re-opened and verified: the tiniest gap locks the export (fail-closed). The Schwärzungsprotokoll documents everything.

See it first

Three 30-second films show the full flow:

Watch the demo films →

Settings — every card explained

Allgemein · General

Language (German, English, French) and theme: light, dark or system.

Erkennung · Detection

Active types: choose which of the 12+ PII types are scanned (name, address, IBAN, e-mail, phone, insurance number, tax id, …). Redaction profile: strict vs. balanced suggestion density. Custom: your own regular expressions and a private gazetteer (up to 2,000 entries, CSV or one-per-line).

Aktenvorlagen · Case templates

Save per-case type selections — e.g. a medical file scans different types than a tenancy file. Select the template when scanning.

OCR-Engine

Two local engines: Paddle (default, strong on German print) and ocrs (faster, leaner). Only relevant for scanned pages; digital PDFs never need OCR.

Lokale Engine · Local engine

The recognition models, their size and variant — including the update state. All models load signature-verified.

Lokaler Assistent · Local assistant

An optional local LLM that helps phrase anonymizations. Runs on your machine; off by default.

PDF/A · Ghostscript

Export redacted documents as archival PDF/A using the bundled Ghostscript — required by many courts and archives.

Ordnerüberwachung · Hot folder

Watch a folder: every PDF dropped there is scanned, redacted and saved automatically — fail-closed, encrypted queue. Ideal for high-volume mailrooms.

Windows Explorer Integration

Right-click any PDF → “Schwärzen mit Datenmaske” opens the app with the document loaded.

Lokale API

A localhost API for scripted workflows (document management systems, automation). Binds to your machine only.

TOM-Dokumentation

Generates the technical-and-organisational-measures record (Art. 32 GDPR) for your compliance file — what the tool does, where data flows.

Experimentelle Funktionen

Early features we ship flagged, not hidden. Anything unstable stays off unless you switch it on.

Updates

Automatic update check against our signed release channel; you choose when to install.

Security & § 203

Local by construction

PDF pages, OCR text, findings and redactions never leave the device. The only network touches: license validation with an automatic check-in (at most once a day while the machine is online; details: privacy policy 4.9) and signed model downloads.