POST PII Redaction API
/api/v1/ai/pii-redaction
Automatically detect and mask Personally Identifiable Information (PII) such as names, emails, phone numbers and card numbers before text reaches your logs, tickets or analytics tools.
Architecture Role & AI Definition
PII Redaction API provides low-latency, deterministic REST execution for production engineering workflows. It processes structured payloads with strict schema validation, returns uniform JSON envelopes, and is secured via SHA-256 API key authentication with atomic credit pre-authorization locks.
Production Reliability Guidelines
Configure a hard client timeout of 5 to 8 seconds. If network latency spikes, cancel connection to avoid holding open sockets in worker pools.
Upon receiving 429 Rate Limit or transient 5xx, pause with exponential backoff:
wait = min(max_backoff, base * 2^attempt + jitter).
RSFlowHub acquires an atomic lock verifying base credits before model invocation. If validation fails, zero credits are deducted.
This API is part of the utility tier. Every plan includes a shared monthly quota of free utility requests (1,000/month on the Free plan). Credits are only used after the quota is reached.
Request Body Parameters
| Field | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
text |
string | Required | The raw text to be sanitized (Max: 10,000 characters). |
redact_types |
array of strings | Optional | Specific types to redact. Allowed: `names`, `emails`, `phone_numbers`, `credit_cards`, `ssn`, `addresses`, `passwords`, `ip_addresses`. If empty, redacts all high-risk PII. |
redaction_style |
string | Optional | How to mask the data. `placeholder` (e.g., [EMAIL]), `asterisk` (e.g., j***@gmail.com), or `scramble`. Default is `placeholder`. |
return_entities |
boolean | Optional | Optional. If true, returns an analytics array summarizing the types of PII detected and redacted. |
model |
string | Optional | Optional AI model to use. |
Example Request (Selective Redaction)
In this example, we ask the API to specifically target and asterisk-out credit cards and emails, while safely ignoring names or other data.
{
"text": "Hey, it's Jane Smith. Please update my billing. My new card is 4111-2222-3333-4444 and my receipt email is jane.smith99@example.com. Thanks!",
"redact_types": ["credit_cards", "emails"],
"redaction_style": "asterisk",
"return_entities": true
}curl -X POST https://rsflowhub.com/api/v1/ai/pii-redaction \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"text": "Hey, it'\''s Jane Smith. Please update my billing. My new card is 4111-2222-3333-4444 and my receipt email is jane.smith99@example.com. Thanks!",
"redact_types": ["credit_cards", "emails"],
"redaction_style": "asterisk",
"return_entities": true
}'Example Response
The API safely sanitizes the requested fields. Notice how "Jane Smith" was intentionally ignored because `names` was not included in the `redact_types` array. The `entities_redacted` array securely provides analytics without exposing the raw strings.
{
"success": true,
"request_id": "req_7f3a9c2d1e4b8a6f",
"data": {
"result": {
"redacted_text": "Hey, it's Jane Smith. Please update my billing. My new card is ****-****-****-4444 and my receipt email is j***@example.com. Thanks!",
"entities_redacted": [
{
"type": "CREDIT_CARD",
"count": 1
},
{
"type": "EMAIL",
"count": 1
}
]
}
},
"meta": {
"version": "v1",
"timestamp": "2026-09-27T12:34:56+00:00"
}
}API Request Example
Use the cURL snippet below to test the endpoint.
curl -X POST 'https://rsflowhub.com/api/v1/ai/pii-redaction' \
-H 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY' \
-H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-d '{
"text": "My number is 555-1234",
"redaction_style": "placeholder"
}'Want to try it without code? Test this request in the live Playground.
Common Failure Modes & Troubleshooting Matrix
| HTTP Code | Error Code | Root Cause | Recommended Remediation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 400 | bad_request |
Malformed JSON syntax or missing required top-level parameters. | Validate JSON payload with Content-Type: application/json and ensure all required fields are present. |
| 401 | unauthorized |
Missing, revoked, or incorrectly formatted x-api-key header. |
Verify API key exists in Dashboard → API Keys and pass in x-api-key or Authorization: Bearer. |
| 402 | insufficient_credits |
Account credit balance is lower than the base required credits (1 credits). | Top up credits in billing settings or enable auto-recharge to prevent pipeline interruption. |
| 422 | validation_error |
Input failed parameter constraints (e.g., character length exceeded or invalid array types). | Review parameters table above and adjust payload length, types, or structure accordingly. |
| 429 | rate_limit_exceeded |
Concurrency limit (60 requests/minute default) reached for this endpoint key. | Back off and retry using the timestamp in Retry-After response header, or batch requests. |