# Special Character Validator

Check if a string contains special characters like !@#$%^&*()_+ and identify which ones are present

> Canonical page: https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/special-character-validator

- **Category:** Validation

- **Keywords:** special, character, validator, symbols, punctuation, check, string

## Overview

The Special Character Validator scans text for special characters such as !@#$%^&*()_+ and identifies which ones are present. It helps verify text compliance, enhance security, or clean data by detecting unwanted symbols.

## Inputs

- **Text to Check** (textarea): Enter text to check for special characters...
- **Check Mode** (select): Select check mode

## When to use

- When validating user input for passwords or forms to ensure special characters are included or excluded.
- When preprocessing text data for analysis by identifying or removing special characters that may cause errors.
- When checking content on platforms to filter out spam or enforce formatting rules that restrict special characters.

## How it works

- Enter or paste the text you want to check into the input field.
- Select the check mode: 'contains' to verify if special characters are present, or 'excludes' to ensure they are absent.
- The tool analyzes the text and displays a list of special characters found or confirms if none are present.
- Review the results to see which specific special characters were detected in your text.

## Use cases

- Validating password strength by ensuring special characters are included for enhanced security.
- Cleaning text datasets for natural language processing by detecting and removing special characters.
- Moderating user-generated content on forums or social media to flag posts with special characters used in spam.

## Frequently asked questions

### What special characters does this tool check for?

It checks for common special characters like !@#$%^&*()_+ and others typically used in text, based on standard definitions.

### Can I customize which special characters to look for?

No, the tool uses a predefined set of special characters and identifies all that appear in the input text.

### What is the difference between 'contains' and 'excludes' check modes?

'Contains' mode verifies if any special characters are present, while 'excludes' mode checks that no special characters are in the text.

### Is there a limit to the text length I can input?

The tool handles typical text inputs efficiently, but very large texts may impact performance; it's optimized for standard use cases.

### How does the tool identify special characters?

It uses accurate Unicode-based detection to reliably identify special characters in the provided text.

## Related tools

- [Slug Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/slug-validator): Validate URL slug strings (lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens only, no special characters)
- [Credit Card Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/credit-card-validator): Validate credit card numbers and identify card type (Visa, MasterCard, UnionPay, etc.)
- [CUSIP Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/cusip-validator): Validate 9-character CUSIP North American securities identifiers with mod-10 check-digit verification, issuer base and issue-number breakdown.
- [ISIN Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/isin-validator): Validate International Securities Identification Numbers (ISO 6166 ISIN) with Luhn check-digit verification, country/issuer prefix and NSIN breakdown.
- [Luhn Checksum Calculator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/luhn-checksum): Validate or generate numbers using the Luhn algorithm (mod-10). Works for credit cards, IMEI, IMEISV, SIN, NPI and any custom Luhn-based identifier.
- [MAC Address Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/mac-address-validator): Validate MAC addresses and identify vendor information
- [SEDOL Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/sedol-validator): Validate 7-character UK/Irish SEDOL securities identifiers with weighted mod-10 check-digit verification and SEDOL-7 structure breakdown.
- [Tracking Number Validator](https://elysiatools.com/en/tools/tracking-number-validator): Identify and validate tracking numbers from FedEx, UPS, DHL, USPS, SF Express (顺丰) and other major carriers

## Samples

- [Special Characters Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/text-special-characters-samples): Sample text files with various special characters, punctuation, and symbols for testing non-alphanumeric character removal
- [Copyright-Free MP3 Audio Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/mp3-samples): Collection of royalty-free audio samples for testing and development purposes including nature sounds, meditation music, and ambient audio
- [Android Image Processing Java Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/android-image-processing-java): Android Java image processing examples including reading/saving images, scaling, and format conversion
- [Android Image Processing Kotlin Samples](https://elysiatools.com/en/samples/android-image-processing-kotlin): Android Kotlin image processing examples including reading/saving images, scaling, and format conversion

## Related content

- [Unicode, Emoji, and Invisible Character Debugging](https://elysiatools.com/en/hubs/unicode-emoji-debugging): Find hidden or confusable Unicode characters, inspect emoji and domain representations, normalize only when justified, and verify the cleaned copy before it reaches search, URLs, forms, or parsers.