file · clean

CLEAN

Link expires in 5 min · file erased in 15
0
THREATS REMOVED
0
HIDDEN FIELDS REMOVED
—
SIZE BEFORE → AFTER

What we removed

ADVANCED

FREE · PRIVATE · NO SIGN-UP

Clean any file. See what it was hiding.

Viruses, macros, trackers and hidden metadata: found, shown to you, and removed. You get a clean copy back, minus everything it was carrying.

~ $ cleanthis --stats
visitor@cleanthis
formats100+
max file size50 MB
files kept0 (erased ≤ 15 min)
trackers0
sign-upnot needed
cleanthis — ~/drop
Drop a file here or paste a link to a file or web page · up to 50 MB · 100+ formats
HOW DEEP TO CLEAN

no sign-up no tracking erased within 15 min links → Webpage Scanner (beta)

$ cleanthis --demo

Watch it catch what's hiding.

Try one of these sample files before you upload anything of your own. Each one carries the kind of thing we find every day.

~/samples
scan.log
findings

IMG_4031.HEIC — preview
1 / 5

$ exif ./IMG_4031.HEIC

What does your last photo know about you?

Your phone writes where you were, when, and on which device into every photo. Anyone you send it to can read it.

Location ... 61.4978 N, 23.7610 E ← to within 5 m
Taken ...... Sun 15 Mar 2026, 18:42:07
Device ..... iPhone 15 Pro, iOS 17.4
Camera ID .. DNXH4T…7Q ← same on every photo you take
Check your own photo The photo looks the same afterwards. The data is gone.

$ cleanthis scan <link> BETA

Check a link before you click it.

We open the page on our servers, never on your device, and tell you what it really does: trackers, fake logins, hidden instructions for AI assistants.

wikipedia.org
No known threatsValid certificate · no trackers · no hidden text
mega-deals-today.example
SuspiciousDomain is 9 days old · fingerprints your device · 23 trackers
secure-login-verify.example
MaliciousCopies a bank's login page · asks you to paste a command to "verify you are human"
Open the Webpage Scanner →example results

$ cleanthis --help levels

Pick how deep it cleans.

Standard suits almost everyone. The other two are there when you need them.

Light

Virus scan and hidden data removed. Nothing else changes.

FOR · photos before you share them

Standard DEFAULT

Macros, scripts and embedded objects stripped, file rebuilt from safe content. Same format back.

FOR · anything from someone you don't know

Aggressive

Everything in Standard, then converted to the safest format: Word to PDF, images to PNG.

FOR · high-risk attachments

4 checks run alongside every clean
[■] virus signatures · millions of known fingerprints, refreshed hourly
[■] threat families · ransomware, banking trojans, toolkits
[■] office macros · what the macro would have done
[■] PDF active content · JavaScript, launch actions, embedded files

Read how it works →

vim ~/why.txt

Why I built this.

Getting a call from a friend or colleague who needs help has become almost a weekly thing. They fell for a scam website, opened a malicious email attachment, or found out that a snooper knew far too much about them. Recently, carefully crafted phishing emails fooled me too.

When I looked for a solution, I couldn't find a tool that was easy to use, affordable and respectful of your privacy. So I built one myself to fill that gap.

Enjoy!

Ziggy · maker of cleanthis.io

What happens to your file

  • Cleaned in a sandbox, then erased within 15 minutes. No copies, no backups.
  • No account needed for the website.
  • No analytics and no trackers.
  • 0 requests to other companies. Open your browser's dev tools and check.
  • The browser extension is open source.
Read the privacy policy →

$ install cleanthis-extension BETA

Do it automatically, right in your browser.

Check the page you're on in one click, right-click any link to scan it, and, if you turn it on, get clean copies of risky downloads. The original is always offered.

  1. Download it from GitHub
  2. Load it in your browser (about a minute)
  3. Pin CleanThis to your toolbar
Get the extension Chrome · Edge · Brave · Opera · Firefox · open source
zsh — ~/projects/inbox-bot
$ curl -X POST https://cleanthis.io/api/v1/sanitize \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer ct_live_…" \
    -F "file=@invoice_8841.pdf" \
    -F "level=standard"

{
  "jobId": "a1b2c3d4-…",
  "status": "queued",
  "level": "standard"
}

$ man cleanthis-api

Clean files from your own code.

  • free while in beta
  • anonymous accounts: no email, no password
  • webhooks and signed download links
  • link scanning over the API too
Read the docs Get an API key

Use it on your computer too

The browser extension and the API are desktop things. Send this link to yourself for later.

$ cleanthis --faq

Questions, answered.

Is it really free?

Yes. The website is free with a generous daily allowance, and the API is free while it's in beta.

What happens to my file?

It's cleaned in a sandbox and erased within 15 minutes, whether cleaning worked or not.

Which files can I clean?

More than 100 formats get a full clean: PDFs, Office files, images, audio, video, email and archives. Light accepts almost anything.

Do I need an account?

No. Accounts are only for the API, and even those have no email or password.

Can it check a link instead of a file?

Yes. Paste a web address into the Webpage Scanner (beta) and it tells you whether it's safe to visit.

More questions →
cleanthis — ~/drop