What is PII? Types and examples
PII (personally identifiable information) is any information that can identify a specific person — on its own, like a passport number, or combined with other data, like a name plus a date of birth. Removing it is what lets you share a document or use an AI tool without exposing the people in it.
Common types of PII (with examples)
| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Names | Full name, maiden name, alias |
| Contact details | Email address, phone number, postal address |
| National & government IDs | US SSN, UK NINO, EU VAT, passport number, DE Steuer-ID, FR INSEE, IT Codice Fiscale, ES DNI |
| Financial data | IBAN, bank account, credit-card number |
| Dates & demographics | Date of birth, age combined with other data |
| Online identifiers | IP address, device identifiers |
| Health data | Medical record numbers and other health information (a special category) |
PII Shield detects 40+ types like these across documents and audio, using an AI model plus precise pattern rules.
PII vs PHI vs personal data
- PII — the common US term for information that identifies a person.
- PHI (protected health information) — health-related data protected under US HIPAA.
- Personal data — the broader EU GDPR term: anything relating to an identifiable person, directly or indirectly. It explicitly includes online identifiers such as IP addresses.
The terms overlap heavily; the practical task is the same — find the identifiers and remove them.
Anonymization vs pseudonymization vs redaction
- Redaction removes or hides data from a document.
- Pseudonymization replaces identifiers with reversible placeholders, keeping the mapping separately.
- Anonymization aims to make re-identification impossible.
PII Shield replaces values with neutral placeholders and keeps the mapping on your own device, so the process is reversible when you need the originals back.
How to remove PII
Open a file in PII Shield, review the highlighted personal data, redact or anonymize it, and export a clean copy — all on your Windows computer. See the anonymize-before-AI guide or how to redact Word, PDF and Excel.
Frequently asked questions
PII (personally identifiable information) is any information that can identify a specific person, on its own or combined with other data — such as a name, email, phone number, ID number or financial details.
PII is the common US term. PHI (protected health information) is health data under US HIPAA. “Personal data” is the broader EU GDPR term, covering anything relating to an identifiable person, directly or indirectly. In practice they overlap heavily.
Redaction removes or hides data from a document. Pseudonymization replaces identifiers with reversible placeholders (the mapping is kept separately). Anonymization aims to make re-identification impossible. PII Shield replaces values with placeholders and keeps the mapping on your device, so you can restore the originals.
There is no single fixed number — it depends on the jurisdiction and the per-country identifiers you count. PII Shield detects 40+ types across documents and audio, from names and emails to national IDs and medical record numbers.
Find and remove PII locally
Free for 14 days on Windows 10 and 11.
Related: anonymize before ChatGPT · use AI without breaking GDPR · local vs cloud redaction