Remove sensitive and identifying information before you submit. Editorial review is an additional check; it does not replace your organization’s permission to share or your responsibility to sanitize material.
What to remove or replace
- Customer names, organization names, domains, public and internal IP addresses, hostnames, usernames and email addresses.
- Passwords, VPN pre-shared keys, private keys, API keys, access tokens, certificate material and encryption secrets.
- Serial numbers, licensing information, internal URLs, ticket references and identifying topology or configuration details.
- Screenshot metadata, browser tabs, image location data and hidden content in attachments.
Preserve the explanation, not the identity
Use consistent substitutions so source/destination relationships, zones, ports and failure mechanisms remain understandable. Reconstruct sensitive scenarios in a controlled lab where appropriate and label that reconstruction.
| Value | Safe representation |
|---|---|
| Customer-specific hostname | edge-fw01.example |
| Public address | 192.0.2.10 (documentation example) |
| VPN PSK, password or token | [REDACTED]; remove the original completely |
| Internal ticket or customer URL | [INTERNAL REFERENCE REMOVED] |
Publication rights and identity
Share only material you are authorized to publish. Contributor applications require an account, email verification and administrator approval. Contact the editorial team before submitting if you need a public pseudonym.
If a secret was exposed
Remove it from the material, notify the responsible system owner and follow your organization’s credential-response process. Sanitizing a published copy does not undo an exposure or remove cached copies.