How to send a copy of your ID more safely from your phone

When a landlord, an employer or a hotel asks for a copy of your ID, send one that says what it's for, with today's date, and with the numbers they don't need blacked out. ScanMojo's Safe Copy makes that copy on your iPhone or Android phone; making and previewing it is free, sharing it is part of ScanMojo Pro, and your scan stays as it is.

This is a ScanMojo Pro tool: $39.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, or $6.99 a month (U.S. prices). Scanning and PDF export stay free.

  1. 1

    Scan the ID

    Choose ID under the viewfinder and scan the front, then the back. For a passport, choose Passport. The scan is filed in a folder that's locked with your face or fingerprint.

  2. 2

    Open Safe Copy

    Open the scan, tap Share and choose Safe Copy.

  3. 3

    Cover the numbers

    Tap Cover Numbers. ScanMojo reads the page and boxes long numbers, like ID, account and card numbers, and a passport's machine-readable lines. Check each page, drag across anything else you'd rather hide, and tap a box to remove it.

  4. 4

    Say what it's for

    Type in "Add a watermark here", or pick a suggestion such as "For identity check only" or "For rental application only". Leave "Add today's date" on so the copy shows when you sent it.

  5. 5

    Share it

    Tap Share Safe Copy. For an ID or passport, "As a true-size copy" puts it on one page at real size, like a photocopy.

What a safe copy changes

The words you chose run in slanted rows across the whole page, so they can't be cropped out cleanly. Anyone who gets the copy later can see who it was meant for and when.

Each page is drawn again as a picture with the boxes painted in, and no text goes with it. Nothing under a box can be copied, searched or lifted out, which isn't always true of a box drawn on top of a PDF. Your scan in ScanMojo isn't changed.

Before you send it

Check the request is real. If a message asks for your ID, reach the company through contact details you already have, not the ones in the message.

Ask what they need to see. Some checks need your ID number or date of birth, so don't cover those; for others, a name and photo are enough. If they have a secure upload page, use it rather than email or text.

A watermark doesn't stop someone misusing a copy, but it makes the copy much harder to reuse for anything else.

What's free

Scanning IDs and passports, the locked folder, and making and previewing a safe copy are free, with no ads and no ScanMojo watermark. Sharing the safe copy is part of ScanMojo Pro.

Your scans stay on your phone unless you share them or turn on sync to your own iCloud Drive or Google Drive.

Questions

Is it safe to send a picture of my ID?

Any copy can be forwarded or kept longer than you'd like. Sending it only to someone you've checked, with what it's for written across it and the numbers they don't need blacked out, makes it far less useful to anyone else.

Is Safe Copy free?

Making a safe copy and previewing it is free. Sharing it is part of ScanMojo Pro. Scanning and sharing a regular PDF stay free, with no ads.

Does Safe Copy find every number on its own?

No. Cover Numbers boxes long numbers and a passport's machine-readable lines, then you check each page and drag across anything else you want hidden.

Does it work on Android?

Yes. Safe Copy works the same way on iPhone and Android, under Share › Safe Copy.

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