How to Remove Hidden Data & Metadata from ODT Files


OpenDocument Text files (ODT) 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 ODT files might contain include document properties, comments, tracked changes, and document versions.

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

The "Remove Properties and Personal Information" feature is not suitable

Windows® has a very limited built-in metadata remover - the "Remove Properties and Personal Information" feature. This feature is completely unsuitable for removing hidden data from ODT files. Out-of-the-box, this feature supports nine notable file formats, but ODT is not one of them! If the user will attempt to remove properties from an ODT 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. If Microsoft Office® is installed on the computer, this feature can remove only a few of the standard document properties. In either case, this feature cannot remove at all other types of dangerous ODT hidden data, including comments, tracked changes, and document versions.

Removing hidden data & metadata from multiple ODT 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 ODT files, BatchPurifier can remove document properties, comments, tracked changes, and document versions.

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