By George Curta · Last updated 2026-04-07
Getting Started
Install the anonym.legal add-in, sign in, and anonymize your first document in Microsoft Word in under 5 minutes.
Install the Add-in
There are two ways to install the anonym.legal add-in for Microsoft Word.
Option A: Microsoft AppSource
- 1.Open Microsoft Word
- 2.Go to Insert → My Add-ins → Store
- 3.Search for "anonym.legal"
- 4.Click Add to install
Option B: Sideload Manifest
- 1.Go to Insert → My Add-ins → Upload My Add-in
- 2.Enter the manifest URL:
https://anonym.legal/office_addin/manifest.xmlSideloading is useful for testing or when AppSource is not available in your organization.
Sign In
After installation, the add-in panel appears on the right side of Word. Sign in with your anonym.legal account.
Zero-Knowledge Authentication: The add-in supports ZK auth. Your password is never sent to the server -- only a cryptographic proof. This means even we cannot see your credentials.
Don't have an account? Create one for free -- the free plan includes 200 credits per month.
Analyze Your Document
With a Word document open, click the Analyze button in the add-in panel. The add-in extracts the text and sends it to the anonym.legal API for PII detection.
- Detects 285+ entity types (names, SSNs, credit cards, medical records, and more)
- Supports 48 detection languages
- Results appear in a list with entity types, values, and confidence scores
Review in Preview Window
Before applying changes, use the Preview Window to review exactly what will be changed. The Preview Window shows:
- Side-by-side original and anonymized text
- Method selector -- switch between Replace, Mask, Redact, Hash, or Encrypt
- Language and preset selectors for quick adjustments
Choose Method and Apply
Select your preferred anonymization method and click Apply to modify the document.
"John Smith" → "<PERSON_1>". Reversible with mapping file.
"john@example.com" → "j***@e******.com". Preserves format.
"John Smith" → "[REDACTED]". Irreversible, maximum privacy.
"John Smith" → "a1b2c3d4...". Consistent across documents.
Fully reversible with the correct encryption key. Best for workflows requiring deanonymization.
Tips for First-Time Users
- Use the Preview Window -- always review detected entities before applying. You can change the method, language, and preset from within the preview.
- Ctrl+Z to undo -- if you apply anonymization and want to revert, use Word's standard Ctrl+Z (Cmd+Z on Mac) to undo the changes.
- Save presets -- if you anonymize similar documents regularly, create a preset to save your entity selection, method, and operator configuration.
- Preserve Formatting -- enable this option in settings to maintain bold, italic, and underline formatting when anonymizing.
About this page
We update this page when our platform or the law changes.
Read our founder note for how we work.
Each change shows up in the timestamp at the top.
Related reading
- Common questions
- Glossary
- How tokens work
- Security posture
- Where we comply
- What we detect
- Case studies
- Release notes
We follow these rules
- GDPR (EU 2016/679).
- ISO/IEC 27001:2022.
- NIS2 (EU 2022/2555).
- HIPAA safe harbor under 45 CFR § 164.514(b)(2).
Our promise
We do not sell your data.
We do not train models on your text.
We store your files in Germany.
You can delete your account at any time.
You own your work.
Where we run
Our servers live in Falkenstein, Germany.
We use Hetzner. They hold ISO 27001 certification.
All data stays in the EU.
Backups run every day.
Need help?
Email support@anonym.legal.
We reply within one business day.
How we test
We run a full check suite on every release.
Each surface gets its own sweep script and report.
Human reviewers spot-check the output each week.
We track recall and precision on a labelled set.
Bad runs block the deploy.
What we never do
- We never sell your information to third parties.
- We never train models on what you upload.
- We never keep your work after you delete it.
- We never share keys with any outside firm.
- We never run ads inside the product.
Plans in plain words
We sell credits, not seats.
One credit covers one short job.
Long jobs use a few credits each.
You can top up at any time.
Unused credits roll over each month.
Read the plans page for current rates.
Who built this
A small team of engineers and lawyers built this.
We ship from Europe and work in the open.
Our founder note spells out why we started.
Where to start
- Open the web app and try a sample file.
- Learn how credits get counted.
- See current plans and limits.
- Meet the team behind the product.
How the parts fit
A browser add-on cleans text inside Chrome.
A Word plug-in handles drafts in Office.
A small desktop tool works on whole folders.
An agent protocol link feeds large models safely.
All four share one core engine and one rule set.
Words from our team
We started this work after a lunch about cookies.
One friend kept getting odd ads on her phone.
We asked why a court file leaked through a draft.
We sketched the first build on a napkin that week.
By month three we had a tiny demo for a friend.
She used it on her first case the next day.
Common questions we hear
Can the tool read scanned PDFs? Yes, with OCR.
Does it work on long files? Yes, in small chunks.
Can I roll my own rule set? Yes, save it as a preset.
Does it run offline? The desktop build runs offline.
Do you keep my files? No, the cloud build wipes after each run.
Will it learn from my work? No, we never train on inputs.
A short tour of the workflow
Upload a file or paste a snippet of prose.
Pick the entities you want gone from the draft.
Choose a method: replace, mask, hash, encrypt, or redact.
Press run and watch the side panel show each hit.
Skim the result and tweak any rule that misfired.
Save the cleaned file or send it to a teammate.