Removing Hidden Personal Information From a Document

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated June 6, 2015)

In the past, Microsoft has come under fire because Word maintains quite a bit of identifiable information with each document. This information is not normally visible, but with a little bit of sleuthing, someone could locate the information. For example, the name of a document's original author is saved with the document, but is hidden. Looking at the document file using a program besides Word allows someone to quickly locate the author's name. The problem, of course, is that you may not want this information disclosed.

Beginning with Word 2002, Microsoft finally provided a way for you to stop personal information from being saved with a file. To make sure personal information is not saved with a document, follow these steps:

  1. Choose Options from the Tools menu. Word displays the Options dialog box.
  2. Make sure the Security tab is displayed. (See Figure 1.)

    3. Figure 1. The Security tab of the Options dialog box.

  3. Select the Remove Personal Information From This File On Save check box. (In Word 2003, the option is called Remove Personal Information From File Properties on Save.)
  4. Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1574) applies to Microsoft Word 2002 and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He  is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Ignoring N/A Values in a Sum

You can use some of Excel's worksheet functions across a range or worksheets, but not all of them. One that has problems with ...

Discover More

Removing Duplicates Based on a Partial Match

Some types of data may have certain fields that contain partially identical information. In such cases you may want to delete ...

Discover More

Making Common Functions Available to Others

When you use macros to create functions, you might want to share those functions with others—particularly if they ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! Are you ready to harness the full power of Word 2013 to create professional documents? In this comprehensive guide you'll learn the skills and techniques for efficiently building the documents you need for your professional and your personal life. Check out Word 2013 In Depth today!

More WordTips (menu)

Recovered Document becomes Default

Word has a feature called AutoRecover that helps you when Word or Windows crashes. If your Normal template gets messed up for ...

Discover More

Mass Search and Replace

If you need to change information in dozens or even hundreds of documents, the task can seem insurmountable. Here's a way you ...

Discover More

Saving in PostScript Format

Word can save your document in PostScript format so that it can be easily processed by other programs that work with ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 7 - 0?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR AUTHORS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2017 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.