Open PII Extractor: Redact Your VA Letters on Your Own Computer
A free, open-source Windows app that removes personal details from VA decision letters before you share them with anyone: a forum, a lawyer, a VSO, an AI tool, or a family member. Everything runs on your computer. No uploads, no cloud, no account, no cost.
Download (free, version checking…)
Two ways to run it. Most people want the installer. Both are the same app.
Downloads come from this site. You can read every line of the source code, and see each release, on our public repository: github.com/eleach1-cpu/open-pii-extractor.
SHA-256 checksums for this version
checking… Setup (installer)
checking… Portable
To check: open PowerShell, run Get-FileHash "path\to\the\downloaded.exe", and compare the result to the matching line above. If it differs, delete the file and download again from the link on this page.
What it removes, and what it leaves alone
Automatically blacked out
- Social Security numbers, in every format
- VA file numbers, claim numbers, and DoD ID (EDIPI) numbers
- ICN numbers from letter footers
- Your name, wherever it appears, including headers and footers
- Your mailing address
- Date of birth
- Dependent names
- Personal phone numbers and email addresses
- QR codes printed on the letter
Left readable on purpose
- Your ratings, decisions, and effective dates
- The medical reasoning and evidence lists
- VA phone numbers (1-800-827-1000, 988, toll-free lines)
- va.gov web addresses and form numbers
- Regulation citations (38 CFR)
- The letter's layout, tables, and page structure
That balance is the point: the parts that identify you disappear, the parts a helper needs to actually understand your case stay readable.
How it works
- Open your letter. Drag in a PDF (digital or scanned) or a photo. Scanned pages are read with built-in text recognition, on your computer.
- Review the preview. The app shows what it removed. Tap any other word to black out every copy of it; tap again to restore.
- Save the redacted copy. Three formats: a PDF that looks exactly like the original with black boxes over the personal details, a plain-text PDF, or a text file.
The original-layout PDF is rebuilt from page images, so there is no hidden text layer underneath the black boxes. Nothing can be copied or scraped out from under them.
Private by design
- All processing happens on your computer. No uploads, no cloud OCR, no account, no telemetry.
- The app blocks its own network access. Every web request from inside the app is refused at the application level.
- Open source. Anyone can read the full code at github.com/eleach1-cpu/open-pii-extractor and verify every claim on this page.
- Free forever. Like everything RateMyVSO makes: no paywall, no upsell, no "pro" version.
Common questions
Why would I redact a VA letter?
Any time the letter leaves your hands: posting a question on a veterans forum, emailing a prospective attorney or claims agent, pasting text into an AI chatbot, or sharing with family. VA decision letters carry your SSN or file number, full name, address, and birth date, everything an identity thief needs on one page.
Does it work on scanned letters and phone photos?
Yes. Scanned PDFs and photos are read with on-device text recognition. Scanned files are limited to 10 pages per file, and every page must be readable; if a page is too blurry to read reliably, the app refuses the whole file and names the page instead of silently skipping it.
Is this the same as the Letter Interpreter on this site?
No, they are partners. The Letter Interpreter explains your letter in plain English and does its own redaction before any text is processed. Open PII Extractor is for everywhere else: it produces a redacted file you can share with anyone, and it never needs the internet at all.
Mac or phone version?
Windows only for now. The code is open source, so a Mac build is possible if there is enough demand.
Why does Windows warn me when I run it?
The app is not code-signed. Signing certificates cost hundreds of dollars a year, and this is a free tool. The warning means "Windows does not recognize the publisher," not "this file is dangerous." Verify the SHA-256 checksum above if you want proof the file is the one we published.
Related Tools and Guides
RateMyVSO. Educational resource. Not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Not legal advice. All RateMyVSO tools are free. Find a VSO representative for personalized guidance.