Configuring Document Redaction

Vault provides tools that enable users to create, review, and manage redacted documents directly within Vault. The Redaction (Redaction annotation tool) annotation tool in the document viewer allows users to create redaction annotations to conceal text or areas of a document. Users can select a redaction type for the annotation to indicate why they are redacting the highlighted area. After adding redaction annotations, a user can generate the redacted copy, in which Vault removes concealed text, sanitizes hidden metadata, and strips links to ensure no sensitive information remains in the document.

Configuration Overview

To configure document redaction, you need to:

  • Configure the document types you want to make available for redaction.
  • Configure the redaction types you want to make available to users during document redaction.
  • Configure the redaction settings.
  • Configure the Generate Redacted Copy user action, or configure the entry action to integrate document redaction into an existing workflow.
  • Optional: Configure the Purpose picklist.
  • Optional: Configure offline annotation for exporting and importing redaction annotations.
  • Grant the appropriate document role permissions for users who will participate in document redaction.

Configuring Document Types for Redaction

Add the required rendition types and relationship types to each document type you want to be available for redaction.

Navigate to Admin > Configuration > Document Types and select Actions > Edit Details on the document type you want to make available for redaction. In the General tab of the Edit Details dialog, add Redacted Rendition to the Rendition Types field, and add Redacted To and Redacted From to the Relationship Types field. Click Save to save the changes.

Optionally, add Proposed Redaction Rendition to the Rendition Types field. This rendition type allows users to download a Proposed Redaction Rendition, which shows the redaction annotations as they are displayed in the document viewer using their configured Outline Color.

To disallow redaction on a document type after initial configuration, remove the rendition types and relationship types above from the document type. Removing these does not delete any redacted copies that have already been generated, but the Redaction panel and redaction annotations are hidden from source documents of that document type. In addition, users cannot add new redactions to documents of that document type.

Configuring Redaction Types

Redaction Types allow users to classify redaction annotations when redacting a document. The Redaction Type configuration determines how the redaction annotation is displayed in a source document, as well as how the redaction is displayed in a generated redacted copy. Users can hover over a redaction annotation in a source document to preview how the redaction will be displayed on the generated redacted copy. The following fields determine the redaction appearance:

  • Outline Color: The outline color of the redaction annotation in the source document and proposed redaction rendition.
  • Fill Color: The fill color of the redaction on the generated redacted copy.
  • Overlay Text: The overlay text displayed on the redaction on the generated redacted copy.
  • Text Color: The color of the overlay text displayed on the redaction on the generated redacted copy.

By default, the CCI (cci__sys) (Commercially Confidential Information), PPD (ppd__sys) (Protected Personal Data), and Other (other__sys) system-managed Redaction Types are available for users when creating redaction annotations. You cannot modify these Redaction Types, but you can deactivate them to make them unavailable for users to select when creating redaction annotations.

The system-managed CCI and PPD Redaction Types adhere to current European Medicines Agency (EMA) requirements for redaction colors and overlay text.

In addition to the system-managed Redaction Types, you can create up to 22 additional custom Redaction Types for users to select when creating redaction annotations, for a total of 25 Redaction Types.

To create a custom Redaction Type:

  1. Navigate to Admin > Configuration > Redaction Types and click Create.
  2. On the Create Redaction Type page, enter a Label for the Redaction Type. This label is displayed to users when creating a redaction annotation. Vault populates the Name field based on the Label, but you can update it if needed.
  3. Select the Outline Color and Fill Color for the redaction.
  4. Optional: Enter the Overlay Text of up to 20 characters and select the Text Color for the Overlay Text.
  5. Click Save to save the custom Redaction Type.

Configuring Redaction Settings

Configure the following settings in the Redaction section in Admin > Settings > General Settings:

  • Include Overlays from Source Document: Enable this setting to include the source document’s overlays on the generated redacted copy.
  • Include Signature Pages from Source Document: Enable this setting to include the source document’s signature pages on the generated redacted copy.
  • Add Redaction Label to Document Name: Enable this setting to add Redacted to the document name of the generated redacted copy. Select Prefix to include the redaction label at the beginning of the name, or select Suffix to include the redaction label at the end of the name. For example: Redacted - Patient Visit Summary or Patient Visit Summary - Redacted. If this setting is disabled, Vault uses the original document name for the generated redacted copy without adding a redaction label.

Configuring the Generate Redacted Copy User Action

To allow users to initiate the Generate Redacted Copy action (or Update Redacted Copy if a redacted copy has already been created), add the Generate Redacted Copy user action to the Redacting Source state of the Redaction Lifecycle. Configuring this user action enables the Generate Redacted Copy and Update Redacted Copy links on the Redactions panel, as well as in the panel’s All Actions menu.

Generate Redacted Copy is also available as an entry action on the Generating Redacted Copy state of the Redaction Lifecycle, which allows you to integrate the redacted copy generation process into your processes and workflows without requiring users to navigate to the Redactions panel to manually generate redacted copies.

To configure the Generate Redacted Copy user action:

  1. Navigate to Admin > Configuration > Object Lifecycles and select the Redaction Lifecycle (redaction_lifecycle__sys).
  2. Select the Redacting Source (redacting_source__sys) state.
  3. In the User Actions section, click Edit, then click Create Rule and create a rule with the following fields:
    a. Condition Type: Always.
    b. Allow the following actions: Generate Redacted Copy
    c. Action Label: Generate Redacted Copy
  4. Click Save to save the rule.

Configuring the Purpose Picklist

The Redactions panel on the Doc Info pane allows users to select the Purpose for why they are adding redactions to the document.

To create Purpose values available for users to select in the Redactions panel, navigate to Business Admin > Picklists, select the Redaction Purpose (redaction_purpose__sys) picklist, and click Create to add the appropriate values.

Configuring Offline Annotation

Vault’s offline annotation feature supports exporting and importing redaction annotations. Users can export a PDF with redaction annotations, modify the redaction annotations using Adobe Reader or Acrobat, and then import the marked up PDF back into Vault. To enable this functionality, navigate to Admin > Settings > General Settings and select the Enable Export / Import of Annotations checkbox.

Granting Document Role Permissions

Grant Redact permissions for the document roles on the specific lifecycle states in which you want redactions to be available.

Navigate to Admin> Configuration > Document Lifecycles > [Lifecycle] > [State] > Security Settings, click Edit, and select Redact for each document role for which you want to allow document redaction. Click Save to save the changes.

You can configure document redactions with the standard System Admin or Vault Owner security profile. For custom security profiles, the following permissions control the ability to configure document redaction:

Type Permission Label Controls
Security Profile Admin: Document Types: Edit Ability to enable redaction for specific document types.
Security Profile Admin: Document Lifecycles: Edit Ability to enable redaction for document roles on specific lifecycle states.
Security Profile Admin: Object Lifecycles: Edit Ability to add the Generate Redacted Copy user action to the Redaction Lifecycle.
Security Profile Admin: Redaction Types: Edit Ability to create and edit Redaction Types.
Security Profile Application: Vault Actions: Manage Redactions Ability to bring forward redaction annotations and move or delete another user’s redaction annotations.