How to Remove Hidden Data & Metadata from ODS Files


OpenDocument Spreadsheet files (ODS) can contain a wealth of hidden data & metadata. While hidden data & metadata are useful for finding files and reviewing documents, they pose privacy and confidentiality risks when the files are shared. The hidden data often contains private and sensitive information, that if unintentionally exposed can cause the document creator and his organization embarrassment with possible financial and legal implications.

Types of dangerous hidden data that ODS files might contain include document properties, comments, tracked changes, and document versions.

ODS is the default spreadsheet format in LibreOffice® Calc. LibreOffice Calc does not have a built-in hidden data & metadata remover like the "Document Inspector" in Microsoft Office® Excel. To properly remove hidden data & metadata from ODS files, one must use a software that was specifically designed for this purpose.

"Remove Properties and Personal Information" doesn't supports ODS

Windows® has a very limited built-in metadata remover - the "Remove Properties and Personal Information" feature. This feature supports nine notable file formats, but ODS is not one of them! If the user will attempt to remove properties from a ODS file with this feature by selecting "Create a copy with all possible properties removed", it will create a completely identical copy of the original file, without warning the user that nothing in fact has been removed from it.

The Windows File Properties Viewer doesn't supports ODS either, and therefore one should not rely on this viewer to asses the risk involved in sharing ODS files, and should clean every file before sharing it with others using a relible hidden data & metadata remover that supports ODS.

Removing hidden data & metadata from multiple ODS files at once

BatchPurifier™ can permanently remove hidden data & metadata from multiple files at once. It supports multiple types of document, image, and media file formats, including OpenDocument Text, (ODT) Spreadsheet, (ODS) and Presentation (ODP) files, Microsoft Office® Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, and PDF files. It's an offline privacy-oriented desktop application for Windows, and has a broad-spectrum of supported hidden data types. From ODS files, BatchPurifier can selectively remove document properties, comments, tracked changes, and document versions.

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