Redacting Whistleblowing Cases – What Do Case Officers Need to Know?

When a public authority receives a request to disclose documents, the same question often arises: how much may – or must – we redact in a whistleblowing case? Many case officers find this difficult, as whistleblowing cases involve sensitive information while the principle of public access imposes strict requirements to release documents.

We interviewed Andreas Wahlström (in Swedish), who works with assessments and redaction of whistleblowing cases at Lantero. He explains both the legal requirements and the practical challenges faced by municipalities and government agencies.

Andreas reminds us that public documents are, as a rule, public. This means that “anyone has the right to request a whistleblowing report.” But the obligation to disclose also comes with a significant responsibility to redact. This applies to both directly identifying information and indirect details that could reveal the whistleblower. Redaction is therefore a central part of managing whistleblowing cases.

The legal basis primarily comes from two chapters in the Swedish Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act: OSL Chapter 32, Section 3 b and OSL Chapter 17, Section 3 b. These regulate the protection of reporting individuals – as well as other persons mentioned in the report. In practice, the guidance is clear: redact rather more than less. If there is any uncertainty, the case officer should act cautiously to protect everyone involved.

For many case officers in municipalities and government agencies, redaction is still a manual process. Andreas notes that in the past six months, new tools have emerged that make the work both faster and safer. These tools propose what should be redacted, simplify the workflow, and help the case officer produce a document that can be safely disclosed.

One such example is Lantero Redact, a tool developed to help public-sector organisations manage redaction in accordance with legal requirements. It provides concrete suggestions on what to redact, is easy to use, and ensures that the material is properly anonymised before disclosure.

For those who want to dive deeper or need support in a specific case, Andreas and the team at Lantero are available to help. Redaction is not only a legal requirement – it is also a crucial part of maintaining trust in the whistleblowing function and protecting reporting individuals.