Visible claim
Every tool explains that supported inputs are processed locally.
DraftFort Privacy Verification Lab
How to verify whether a PDF tool uploads your file
A privacy claim should be testable. Use our harmless synthetic PDF, watch the browser's network activity, and inspect the evidence for yourself—on DraftFort or on another web tool. Then compare what major providers currently say about online processing and deletion.
Purpose-built test data: no personal, financial, health, legal or employment information.
01
Reproduce it in Chrome
Run the no-upload test yourself
Chrome DevTools records network activity while it is open. The key is to separate requests needed to load the webpage from requests made only after you add and process a document.
- Use harmless data.Download our synthetic PDF above. Never begin a privacy test with a real sensitive document.
- Open a tool and DevTools.Press F12 or Ctrl + Shift + I, then select Network.
- Establish a clean baseline.Wait for the page to finish loading, then clear the Network log. Leave recording enabled.
- Process and download.Add the test PDF, use the tool and export the result. Do not navigate away.
- Inspect every new request.Check its URL, method, initiator, headers and payload. Look closely at Fetch/XHR and POST/PUT requests.
A local download may appear as a blob: URL or only in the browser's download list. That is not an HTTP upload. A file transfer to a server appears as a network request with a destination and request data.
Chrome documents the Network panel in its officialNetwork panel overviewandreference.
02
Read the log accurately
What normal DraftFort page traffic looks like
“No upload” does not mean “the website makes zero requests.” A webpage must retrieve its code and may record aggregate performance. The privacy question is whether your tool inputs or file bytes are transferred for processing.
| You may see | Why it exists | Document upload? |
|---|---|---|
GET HTML, CSS, JavaScript or font files | Loads the page and local tool code | No |
GET internal DraftFort pages | Browser link prefetching for faster navigation | No |
GET Cloudflare's analytics beacon | Loads the small performance-measurement script | No |
POST /cdn-cgi/rum | Sends page-performance timing data on the proxied live site | No |
data: preview | Displays locally generated page thumbnails without a server | No HTTP request |
blob: download | Saves an in-memory result created by your browser | No HTTP request |
03
Source-backed comparison
What major online PDF services say happens to files
“Secure upload,” “automatic deletion,” and “no upload” describe different processing models. The table below records each provider's own published wording so you can compare the data path—not guess from a padlock icon.
On a small screen, swipe the table sideways to read every column.
| Service | Provider-stated online handling | Provider-stated deletion or retention | Published source |
|---|---|---|---|
| DraftFort | Supported PDF workflows run in the browser; the selected PDF is not sent to DraftFort for processing. | No server copy is created by the workflow. | Current runtime evidence |
| iLovePDF | Its security page describes uploaded files, cloud infrastructure, and server processing. | Processed files are automatically deleted within two hours; signed-document rules differ. | iLovePDF security |
| Smallpdf | Its safety guidance describes files being uploaded to and processed on its servers. | Most free-tool files are deleted after one hour; account storage follows different controls. | Smallpdf safety guide |
| Sejda | Its online tool pages describe secure uploads and offer Sejda Desktop for local processing instead. | Online files are described as automatically deleted after two hours. | Sejda online-tool notice |
| FreePDFConvert | Its instructions describe uploading a document and processing it on the service. | Files can be deleted after download and are automatically deleted after three hours. | FreePDFConvert overview |
| Online2PDF | Its converter labels files as uploaded for conversion and says uploaded files are never saved. | The provider says all data is deleted after conversion. | Online2PDF converter |
Transfer is not the same as retention. A service can upload a file, process it securely, and delete it quickly. Browser-local processing avoids creating that server copy for the supported task.
This is not a security ranking. Encryption, deletion controls, certifications and local processing address different risks. A provider can also offer a separate desktop or account-storage product with different handling.
Verify current terms before sensitive work. These are provider-published statements reviewed July 16, 2026—not an independent audit of another company's infrastructure. Policies and individual tools can change.
04
Representative runtime check
Current DraftFort test results
On July 15, 2026, we compared the Network log after page load with the requests created while completing four representative workflows in a locally served production build using Chrome 150 on Windows 10/11. We found no Fetch/XHR/POST/PUT request carrying tool inputs or PDF bytes during processing or export.
| Workflow | Input | Observed after baseline |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice generatorCreate an invoice PDF | Synthetic form values | No document-data request |
| Merge PDFCombine two PDF files | Test PDF × 2 | No file-data request |
| Rotate PDFRotate pages with previews | Test PDF | No file-data request |
| Compress PDFCompress an image-heavy PDF | Test PDF | No file-data request |
What “no document-data request” means: no new HTTP request attributable to processing contained the synthetic form values, file payload, or a transfer comparable in size to the source fixture. Ordinary page and analytics traffic described above was excluded only after its URL, initiator and payload were inspected. For automated file selection, the public fixture was fetched once from/lab/draftfort-privacy-test.pdf; that known GET completed before the processing baseline was recorded.
05
More than a slogan
Four layers of privacy evidence
Static architecture
DraftFort deploys as static assets with no document-processing API, upload endpoint or AI proxy.
Browser restrictions
The Content Security Policy restricts scripted connections to the site's own origin.
Runtime verification
The Network panel lets users observe what the current page actually sends.
What the security policy proves—and what it does not
DraftFort's connect-src 'self' rule blocks scripted connections to unlisted external origins through interfaces such as Fetch, XMLHttpRequest, WebSocket and sendBeacon. It is useful defense in depth, but it does not by itself prove that a page cannot send data to the same origin. That is why the static architecture and runtime test both matter.
See MDN'sconnect-src reference.
06
Honest boundaries
What this test cannot guarantee
- This is a reproducible product test, not a formal independent security audit.
- A browser extension, malware or a compromised device is outside DraftFort's control.
- Code can change. Check the test date and repeat the method when privacy matters.
- Stateful generators expose a Private draft control. Saving is off by default for new visitors and, when enabled, remains only in that browser.
- Local processing does not guarantee perfect preservation of every advanced PDF feature.
- Password-protected PDFs are not decrypted or bypassed.
Keep testing us
Privacy should survive inspection
Read the full Privacy Policy. If your result differs from ours, send the tool URL, browser version and request details to hello@draftfort.com. Do not attach a sensitive document.