How to Edit PDFs Without Risking Your Privacy

No Adobe Acrobat? No Problem: Use this privacy friendly way to edit PDFs

Need to remove pages from a PDF but don’t have a full Adobe license?

Your options are usually one of the following:

1. Pay for an Adobe acrobat license.

2. Use a “free” online PDF editor.

Unfortunately the free version of Adobe Acrobat does not allow you to delete pages. You’ll need to upgrade to a paid license for that type of editing. For most, the steep cost isn’t worth the periodic need.

Free PDF editors are readily available online. But they obviously come with a catch. Uploading sensitive documents to those services is a massive privacy and security risk. They might store your files, scan them for data, or worse.

This is a clear “Free Trap” scenario, which we discussed in one of our earliest newsletter posts. 👇

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Good news: you don’t need fancy software—or to compromise your privacy—to get the job done. Here’s a quick, privacy-friendly hack you can use right now:

The Steps:

1. Open the PDF in Your Browser.
   Most modern browsers like Chrome, Brave, Edge, or Safari can open PDFs directly. Just drag and drop your file into the browser or open it via “File > Open.”

2. Print or Save to PDF.
   Hit Ctrl + P (Windows) or Command + P (Mac) to open the print menu. Select “Save as PDF” or “Microsoft Print to PDF” as your printer.

3. Choose the Pages to Keep.
   In the print settings, you’ll see an option to choose specific pages (e.g., “1-3, 5-7”). Select the ones you want to keep and leave out the ones you don’t.

4. Save Your New PDF.
   Click “Save,” and your new, trimmed-down PDF will be ready. No uploads, no tracking, no risks.

Screenshot from Brave browser

Why This Matters

This method keeps your files local and avoids the need to install extra software. It’s quick, easy, and ensures that your documents stay secure—because privacy isn’t just about avoiding snooping; it’s about keeping control over your information.

Friendly reminder to switch your browser to a privacy friendly one like Brave or Mullvad. We recommend avoiding Big Tech browsers like Chrome, Safari and Edge except where required by your employer.

Have you tried this trick before? Let us know if it works for you—or if you have another privacy-friendly workarounds like this.

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Disclaimer: None of the above is to be deemed legal advice of any kind. These are *opinions* written by a privacy attorney with 15+ years of working for, with and against Big Tech and Big Data. And this post is for informational purposes only and is not intended for use in furtherance of any unlawful activity.

• Privacy freedom is more affordable than you think. We tackle the top Big Tech digital services and price out privacy friendly competitors here. The results may surprise you.

• Check out our Personal Privacy Stack here.

• Discover the very real privacy risks of AI chat bots here.

• Proton is running a limited time promotion right now on their core offerings like Proton VPN and Proton Mail. Get privacy peace of mind for as little as $3.99 per month (affiliate link).

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