You are here

Warning: Parties must redact protected information from transcripts and other civil, criminal, and bankruptcy papers

If you are filing documents that include information designated as private under Fed. R. Civ. P. 5.2, Fed. R. Crim. P. 49.1, and Fed. R. Bankr. P. 9037 and redacted under those rules, or redacted sensitive information of other sorts, you are responsible for ensuring the integrity of the information thus redacted. Recent news suggests that many electronic means of redacting information from electronic documents are insecure (see GE Suffers a Redaction Disaster, the Connecticut Law Tribune, May 28, 2008). If you are not certain that your electronic method of redaction is secure, use physical methods of redaction such as black markers, or replace redacted information with X’s in typed documents. Adding black bars using Adobe Acrobat or highlighting text in black within a word processor is unlikely to be secure without substantial additional technical steps. Consult a technical or security expert if you are concerned about potential problems with the redaction process that you use. If you have a document that includes extensive information of a sensitive or private nature, consider filing a motion requesting permission to file that document under seal. If you have questions, please contact our Electronic Filing Help Desk toll free at 713-250-5500.