Is FileHook safe?Here are the honest answers
Free tools invite the same three questions: is it safe, what is the catch, and how do you make money. Rather than let other sites answer those for us, here they are, including the parts that are not flattering.
Where does the work actually happen?
This is the question that decides everything else. Most online PDF sites work by uploading your file, doing the job on their servers, and deleting the copy some hours later. That is a normal way to build these tools, and it is why nearly all of them cap you at a few tasks per hour: every job costs them money.
The FileHook editor works the other way around. The code that reads and rewrites your PDF is downloaded into the browser tab and runs on your own machine. That has two effects. Your document never reaches us, so there is no copy to protect. And there is nothing for us to ration, which is why the free allowance is a generous 10 files a day rather than the two or three most tools stop you at.
Being straight about it: this is not true of every feature. The list below says which ones need a server and why.
What needs a server, and what happens to those files
Three things cannot run purely in your browser, because of what they are:
- Sending a document for signature. Other people have to open it, so it has to live somewhere they can reach. It stays until the signing finishes, then you can download the signed copy and the certificate.
- Some document conversions. A few formats need processing that browsers cannot do well. Those files go to temporary storage and are deleted automatically after two hours.
- Anything you asked us to save. Invoice history, for example. It is there because you wanted it kept, and you can delete it.
Everything else, which is most of the product, never leaves your device. Each tool page says which kind it is, at the top, before you upload anything.
What we charge for
Pro is $3.99 a month. The free plan is not a trial and it does not expire. What it does have is limits on the handful of features that cost us real money to run:
- Ten finished files a day, shared across every tool.
- Receipt to CSV: 5 receipts a month are free.
- Invoice templates: 8 of the 20 are free.
- Send for signature: 3 documents every 30 days, up to 2 people each.
- Smart Fill has a fill limit on the free plan.
Editing, signing a document yourself, page operations, merging, splitting, converting, compressing, and the photo tools are free with no cap and no watermark. See the pricing page for the full split.
What we are not good at
A comparison page that says we win everything is worth nothing, so: we do not do signer identity verification, qualified signatures under eIDAS or Aadhaar eSign, app integrations, reusable signing templates, or the compliance attestations an enterprise procurement review will ask for. We do not have a desktop app or cloud sync.
If those are on your list, a bigger signing product is the right answer, and our DocuSign comparison lays out exactly where the line falls.
Straight answers
Is FileHook safe to use?+
For editing, yes, and for a specific reason: the editing tools run inside your browser tab. Your PDF is opened by code on your own machine and never sent to us, so there is no copy of it on our side to leak, sell, or lose. A few features do need a server, and those are listed further down this page.
Are free online PDF editors safe in general?+
It depends entirely on where the work happens. Most free PDF sites upload your file to their servers, process it there, and delete it after a few hours. That is normal and usually fine, but it means your document sits on someone else's machine for a while. The safer pattern is a tool that does the work in the browser. Before trusting any of them with something sensitive, check whether the page says the file is uploaded, and whether it says when it is deleted.
What is the catch with the free plan?+
There is no watermark and no hourly wait, which is where most free PDF tools get you. The free plan covers 10 finished files a day, shared across every tool and reset at midnight UTC, which is more than most people use in a week. A few features have their own limits on top: receipts convert 5 a month, 8 of the 20 invoice templates are free, and you can send 3 documents for signature every 30 days. Editing itself is never capped, only saving the result.
How does FileHook make money?+
From Pro subscriptions at $3.99 a month. We do not sell data, we do not run ads, and we do not train anything on your documents. If a feature is expensive for us to run, we put a limit on the free tier and charge for more of it. That is the whole model.
Do you keep my files?+
For the in-browser tools there is nothing to keep, because nothing is uploaded. For the features that do need a server, files go to temporary storage and are deleted automatically after two hours. Documents you send out for signature are the exception: they have to stay until everyone has signed, because the other people need to open them.
Do exports have a watermark?+
No. Not on the free plan, not on any plan, not on any tool. This used to be a common complaint about free PDF sites and we removed the practice entirely.
Do I have to create an account?+
Not to edit, sign a document yourself, merge, split, convert, or use any of the browser-side tools. You only need an account for things that must persist beyond the tab, like sending a document to someone else for signature or keeping invoice history.
What is FileHook not good at?+
Enterprise compliance paperwork, signer identity verification, qualified signatures under eIDAS or Aadhaar eSign, app integrations, and reusable signing templates. If your procurement team needs attestations, we are not the right tool yet and we would rather say so than waste your time.
Can I use it for confidential documents?+
The browser-side tools are a reasonable fit, because the file does not leave your device. For anything covered by a policy at your workplace, check that policy first. If your rule is that regulated documents cannot touch third-party software at all, no web tool passes, including this one.
What happens to my documents if FileHook shuts down?+
The editing tools produce a normal PDF that downloads to your device, so nothing you make here is locked up in our service. Signed documents and their certificates can be downloaded at any time, and we would recommend keeping your own copies regardless of which signing service you use.
Try it on something small first
Open a file you do not care about, make an edit, download it. That takes a minute and tells you more than this page does.
Edit a PDF now