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A case study in PDF forensics: The Epstein PDFs

This article details a PDF forensics case study on a small, random selection of the Epstein PDF files released by the US Department of Justice (DoJ). The tranche contains 4,085 PDF files, with an estimated 5,879 remaining unreleased. Key findings include:

  • A difference in PDF version reporting between forensic tools.
  • The presence of two incremental updates.
  • The discovery of a hidden (orphaned) document information dictionary revealing the software used in processing.
  • The DoJ avoided JPEG images to prevent metadata leakage.
  • Overall, the DoJ’s sanitization workflow could be improved to reduce file size and information leakage.
Peter Wyatt

By Peter Wyatt
December 2025

A case study in PDF forensics: The Epstein PDFs

This article details a PDF forensics case study on a small, random selection of the Epstein PDF files released by the US Department of Justice (DoJ). The tranche contains 4,085 PDF files, with an estimated 5,879 remaining unreleased. Key findings include:

  • A difference in PDF version reporting between forensic tools.
  • The presence of two incremental updates.
  • The discovery of a hidden (orphaned) document information dictionary revealing the software used in processing.
  • The DoJ avoided JPEG images to prevent metadata leakage.
  • Overall, the DoJ’s sanitization workflow could be improved to reduce file size and information leakage.
Peter Wyatt

By Peter Wyatt
December 2025

PDF moves ahead with HDR

December 2023 by PDF Association staff
Article


The Imaging Model Technical Working Group (TWG) will now focus on the research, specification, and prototyping at the very core of the PDF imaging model, with special focus on HDR … Read more

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November 2023 by PDF Association staff
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The new VSCode extension by the PDF Association provides PDF syntax awareness to this popular editor, and is designed to … Read more

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November 2023 by Peter Wyatt
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The PDF Association’s unique Visual Studio Code “pdf-cos-syntax” extension is now available for immediate download.

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November 2023 by PDF Association staff (PDF Association, Inc.)
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The PDF technical community will hold a series of online meetings during February 2024 to continue advancing the PDF file … Read more

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November 2023 by Dietrich von Seggern (callas software GmbH)
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Callas software’s Dietrich von Seggern describes a few of the innovative technologies under consideration for PDF as discussed at the … Read more

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November 2023 by PDF Association staff
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We wanted to know how well ChatGPT processes PDF files. So we signed up for ChatGPT 4.0, the paid version, … Read more

PDF in the Wild

October 2023 by Peter Wyatt
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Although PDF is commonly understood as a single holistic file format, in reality, PDF comprises a number of distinct dialects, … Read more

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October 2023 by PDF Association staff
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5 years ago the PDF Accessibility LWG began a project to develop a set of accessibility techniques for PDF files. … Read more

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October 2023 by National Archives and Records Administration

New federal regulations set digitization standards for permanent records and require agencies to manage their permanent records in digital format.

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October 2023 by PDF Association staff
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PDF Week Fall 2023 in San Francisco covered subjects ranging from HDR to compression, color fonts, animation, accessibility and (much!) … Read more

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October 2023 by PDF Association staff
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The PDF Association is perhaps DARPA’s smallest-ever prime contractor. For DARPA’s SafeDocs program, however, it’s also the biggest success story.

PDF in the Wild

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