# Log Redactor

Batch redact sensitive data from logs using configurable rules and multiple strategies

> Canonical page: https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/log-redactor

- **Category:** Data Processing

- **Keywords:** log, redaction, privacy, gdpr, hipaa, pci, pii, security, compliance, sanitize

## Overview

**Redaction Strategies:**

- **full** - Replace entire match with replacement string
- **mask** - Replace each character with mask character
- **keepFirstN** - Keep first N characters, mask rest (N specified in replacement)
- **keepLastN** - Keep last N characters, mask rest (N specified in replacement)
- **keepFirstLastN** - Keep first N and last N, mask middle (N specified in replacement)
- **hash** - Replace with SHA-256 hash of original value
- **partial** - Show format but replace content (e.g., j***@email.com)

**Custom Rules Format:**
```
# Format: field_name|pattern|strategy|replacement
email|[\w.-]+@[\w.-]+|mask|[EMAIL]
phone|\d{3}-\d{3}-\d{4}|keepLast4|***-***-XXXX
ssn|\d{3}-\d{2}-\d{4}|keepLast4|XXX-XX-XXXX
apiKey|Bearer [\w.-]+|replace|[REDACTED]
ip|\d{1,3}\.\d{1,3}\.\d{1,3}\.\d{1,3}|mask|X.X.X.X
```

**Compliance Presets:**
- **GDPR** - Email, phone, IP, SSN, passport
- **HIPAA** - Email, phone, SSN, MRN, diagnosis
- **PCI DSS** - Card numbers, CVV, expiry, PIN

## Inputs

- **Log Content** (textarea): Paste your log content here...
- **Preset Rules** (select)
- **Custom Rules (Optional)** (textarea): # Format: field_name|pattern|strategy|replacement email|\[\w.-\]+@\[\w.-\]+|mask|\[EMAIL\] phone|\d{3}-\d{3}-\d{4}|keepLast4|4 ssn|\d{3}-\d{2}-\d{4}|keepLast4|4
- **Case Sensitive Matching** (checkbox)
- **Dry Run (Preview Only)** (checkbox)
- **Generate Compliance Report** (checkbox)

## When to use

- When sharing logs with external parties to prevent exposure of sensitive data.
- Before archiving logs to comply with data retention and privacy policies.
- During security audits or compliance checks to anonymize personal information.

## How it works

- Paste or input your log content into the designated text area.
- Select a compliance preset (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA, PCI DSS) or define custom redaction rules.
- Choose redaction strategies for each data type, such as masking or partial replacement.
- Run the tool to generate redacted logs and optionally a compliance report.

## Use cases

- Redacting email addresses and IP addresses from web server logs for GDPR compliance.
- Masking credit card numbers in e-commerce transaction logs to meet PCI DSS requirements.
- Anonymizing patient identifiers in healthcare application logs for HIPAA compliance.

## Frequently asked questions

### What redaction strategies are available?

Strategies include full replacement, masking characters, keeping first or last N characters, hashing, and partial display (e.g., j***@email.com).

### Can I create custom redaction rules?

Yes, you can define custom rules using regex patterns and specify the redaction strategy and replacement text.

### Is there a preview option before applying redactions?

Yes, enable the dry run feature to preview changes without modifying the original logs.

### Does the tool generate a compliance report?

Yes, you can generate a report summarizing the redactions made for audit purposes.

### What compliance presets are supported?

Presets include GDPR (email, phone, IP, SSN), HIPAA (medical data plus PII), and PCI DSS (card numbers, security codes).

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## Samples

- [Log Files with Sensitive Data](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/log-with-sensitive-data): Sample log files containing various types of PII (Personally Identifiable Information) for testing PII detection and log redaction tools
- [ELK Stack Log Analysis Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/elk-stack-samples): Comprehensive ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana) samples for log aggregation, processing, and visualization in distributed systems
- [Nginx Log Parser Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/nginx-log-samples): Comprehensive Nginx log samples for testing log-parser tool, including access logs and error logs with various formats and scenarios
- [Web Image Processing Python Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/web-image-processing-python): Web Python image processing examples using PIL/Pillow including reading, saving, resizing, and format conversion

## Related content

- [PII Detection and Log Redaction Review](https://elysiatools.com/en/hubs/pii-log-redaction): Find likely personal data in logs, text, and PDFs, redact review copies, validate identifier patterns, and require human approval before sharing.