Whenever you take a screenshot, your gadget captures all the information on the selected area. Some of it could be sensitive and you would prefer not to share it with anyone. The problem is how to do it without attracting much attention. Most people blur the information using an inbuilt highlighter. There are different and better ways to hide your information in screenshots.
How to blur text in a screenshot
Your phone or computer provides built-in tools for taking and sharing screenshots. In the process, you could share information that you should not. Sharing it could keep your privacy and safety at risk. You might want to keep your credit data, emails, SSN, and home address private. You have several options to help you hide your private data.
Use your built-in photo editor to overlay the screenshot with elements
The quickest method you could consider is to cover the information with certain elements. The most common way is to place a sticker on the image. Open the photo editor and highlight the area you want to hide with the sticker. If you want a fancier element, you may consider overlaying it with an icon or emoji. Some of the common photo editors for editing screenshots include the following. Snipping Tool, Lightshot, PicPick, and Greenshot.
Screenshots serve different purposes. You can use them to share instructions or capture memorable moments. They are useful for capturing the moment on the screen. There are different ways to take screenshots on Mac. You may use some of the top screenshot apps for MacOS. You could decide to use a snipping app for Mac. Once you take the screenshot, ensure it contains no sensitive information. If it does, use the various tools that remove unwanted data or hide it. This action ensures no unauthorized person will see your private information. To hide information using a photo editor, follow these steps.
- Select the screenshot you want to blur
- Open your photo editor
- Scroll to the bottom and open the Edit button
- Scroll further and open the Stickers button
- From the options displayed, choose your preferred sticker
- Resize it to fit the area with the sensitive content info you want to blur
- Once completed, save the edited screenshot and share
Use an automated redaction program
Automated redacting programs help you remove private data from screenshots. The program uses AI and machine learning capabilities to remove the data. Using an automatic program applies best when you have a large volume of screenshots to work on. The program automatically detects all sensitive data and blacks it out. Examples of redaction software include Adobe Acrobat Professional, Redactable, and CaseGuard. There are other tools such as Objective Redact, Egress Respond, and PDFtron. To redact information from a screenshot using CaseGuard, follow these steps.
Open the program and create the redaction settings. Since it uses AI, you need to set the fields you want redacted. You could redact your name, credit card number, SSNs, bank details, and so on.
Drag and drop the image you want to redact in the program. You may also upload them to the program. Choose your method of redaction which can be manual or automatic. Apply the mode you select to begin the process. Choose the location where you want the redacted file/s to be saved. You may add different effects to the blur screen as you wish. Save the screenshots and get ready to share.
Hide data using a text editor
If what you need to hide is in text form, a text editor can help you do the work. An editor is a program that allows you to remove text from documents. The software is also known as a notepad program. It allows you to change the form of the text, create new text, or remove it. Some examples of text editors include the following: Notepad, Atom, and CodePen. You may also use UltraEdit, Sublime Text, or Vim.
Use a cropping tool
If the information you need to hide is near the edges, try and use a cropping tool. A cropping tool allows you to remove parts of the screenshot. Identify the image and open the cropping tool. Trim the area you want to remove information. Once done, save the final screenshot. One of the common cropping tools is Photoshop. You can get built-in cropping tools on your device or use graphic design tools.
Conclusion
Using your device to take and share screenshots is great. You could end up sharing information that you should not. The best way to prevent this from happening is to hide the information before sharing. Different tools help you hide data in different ways. You may use image editing programs, redaction software, or text editors. You may opt for cropping tools to remove the unwanted parts. Hiding your information improves your privacy and data security.
SAM 
Arslan Farooq