How to Remove Metadata from Microsoft 365 Documents
In the legal field, safeguarding client confidentiality and maintaining document integrity are paramount. Metadata, often overlooked, can pose significant risks to law firms if not properly managed. Recent data from IBM, shows that in 2024, 46% of data breaches include sensitive customer information and can cost an organization up to $4.88 million, highlighting the growing need for stronger cybersecurity measures.
This blog will guide you through understanding metadata, the reasons for its removal, and the steps to efficiently remove metadata from documents. Additionally, we'll explore the best metadata cleaner solution for law firms.
What is Metadata?
Metadata provides information about a document that isn't visible in the main content and is essentially "data about data." Some examples of metadata include:
- Author information
- Document history including track changes, comments, and previous versions
- Date and time stamps of when the document was created, modified, or accessed
- File properties including size, location, and format details
In legal documents, metadata can unintentionally reveal sensitive information, previous drafts, or confidential client details.
Types of Metadata
Before diving into how to remove metadata, it's essential to understand the various types that may be embedded in documents. Metadata can be categorized into multiple forms, including:
- Descriptive Metadata: This includes information that describes the document, such as the title, author, keywords, and subject. It helps with the document’s identification and searchability.
- Structural Metadata: Structural metadata outlines how a document is organized. For instance, it may track chapters, tables, paragraphs, and page numbers. In PDFs, it also relates to how images or media are embedded.
- Administrative Metadata: This category involves technical details like the creation date, modification dates, and file format. It also tracks who has accessed the document and when.
- Legal Metadata: This often pertains to proprietary information in legal documents, such as usage rights and confidentiality agreements. It's crucial to remove or mask this type to prevent unauthorized sharing of sensitive details.
- Version Control Metadata: Includes track changes, comments, and versions of a document. For legal professionals, this can be especially dangerous, as it may reveal previous drafts or revisions that are not meant for client or opposing counsel review.
Each of these types has the potential to expose information inadvertently, so law firms must carefully manage the removal of metadata before sharing documents.
Why Should You Remove Metadata?
It's important to remove metadata when sharing files for several reasons. A few critical ones include:
- Client Confidentiality
Ensuring the privacy of client information is a top priority for law firms. Metadata may inadvertently disclose confidential client information, putting client trust and firm reputation at risk. - Preventing Data Leaks
Legal documents often undergo multiple revisions. Metadata can retain information about these changes, which might be detrimental if accessed by unauthorized parties. - Compliance and Risk Management
Certain legal standards and regulations require the removal of metadata to ensure compliance. Failing to do so can lead to legal repercussions or penalties. - Professionalism
Removing unnecessary metadata showcases a law firm's commitment to professionalism and attention to detail, enhancing client confidence.
How to Remove Metadata from Word and PDF docs
While removing metadata from documents is possible using built-in tools like Microsoft Word and PDF editors, these methods can be time-consuming and may not always capture all metadata effectively. For law firms that handle sensitive client information, relying on these basic tools can leave room for error or missed metadata. Removing metadata is essential for maintaining client confidentiality and ensuring compliance with data protection regulations. Whether you are dealing with Microsoft Word, PDF, or other file formats, ensuring that no hidden data remains is a critical step before sharing documents.
Why Built-in Tools Might Not Remove Metadata Properly
Although built-in tools in Word and PDF editors can effectively remove some metadata, they may not catch all forms of hidden data, especially in complex documents with multiple revisions or embedded media. This is where more advanced metadata cleaning solutions come into play. They offer additional features, such as batch processing, automated metadata scanning, and email integration, helping firms handle large volumes of documents securely and efficiently.
For organizations that need to consistently maintain high standards of document security and compliance, integrating an advanced metadata cleaning tool into the workflow is a smart choice.
Best Metadata Cleaner Solution
Litera’s metadata cleaning tool is used by 80% of Am Law 100 to securely collaborate and share documents directly from Microsoft Outlook. With Metadact, firms can supercharge document security and mitigate the risk of costly reputational and regulatory penalties, while mitigating the risk of human error.
Features of Metadact
- Metadata Cleaning: Detect and clean 300+ types of metadata from Microsoft 365 documents, PDF, images, and ZIP files on your local workstation, server, or third-party applications
- Sensitive Data Handling: Set policies that alert email senders when trying to reply all or forward emails and attachments
- Cleaning Profiles: Configure metadata cleaning profiles depending on your organization’s security stance
- Full Email Control: Leverage DLP capabilities by blocking suspicious emails, preventing email sends to specific domains, email addresses, or sending specific file types
- Attachment Manage: Manage and bind attachments, adjust security permissions, rename and reorder them, automatically insert cover pages and Tables of Content, and convert to PDF directly from Outlook
- Analytics Service: Strengthen security by checking email activity of departing employees, discovering data leak sources, and generating Kibana reports
In the legal industry, managing metadata is not just a technical necessity but a critical component of risk management and client trust. By understanding the importance of metadata removal and utilizing effective tools like Metadact, law firms can safeguard sensitive information and maintain professional standards.
Ensure your firm is equipped to handle metadata with precision and confidence. Take proactive steps to integrate metadata cleaning into your document management practices today. Ready to see Metadact Server in action? Speak with one of our experts now.
