anonymize-check

Files (4)

• SKILL.md
• anon_check.py · scripts/
• denylist.example.txt · scripts/
• test_anon_check.py · tests/

SKILL.md (first lines)

# Anonymize check

## Script

`scripts/anon_check.py` (standard library only; uses PyMuPDF or poppler if present).

```bash
# 1. keep a private deny-list (never commit a filled-in one publicly)
cp .paper-writing/skills/anonymize-check/scripts/denylist.example.txt paper/.denylist.txt   # then edit

# 2. scan sources, the built PDF, the supplementary zip, the artifact directory
python3 .paper-writing/skills/anonymize-check/scripts/anon_check.py paper/ paper/main.pdf \
        supplementary.zip artifact/ --deny-file paper/.denylist.txt \
        --allow-url 'github\.com/<third-party-org>/'

# 3. self-test (synthetic sample; must print PASS)
python3 .paper-writing/skills/anonymize-check/scripts/anon_check.py --selftest
```

Exit status 1 if any HIGH finding. `--json` for machine-readable output,
`--min-severity MEDIUM` to reduce noise.

## What it flags

| severity | finding |
|---|---|
| HIGH | deny-list term in text/code/filename/PDF bytes; e-mail; local path (`/home/<u>`, `/Users/<u>`, `C:\Users\<u>`); non-anonymous `\author`/`\institute`/`\thanks`/`\email`; acknowledgements section; PDF Author metadata; embedded figure path (`PTEX.FileName`) containing a username or deny term; `.git` inside an archive; URL containing a deny term |
| MEDIUM | first-person self-citation ("our previous work", "we previously showed", "our paper~\cite"); personal code-host URL (github/gitlab/.github.io/...) not in the allow-list; funding statement; PDF Title/Subject/Keywords metadata; `.git` directory in an artifact folder; hits inside comments (downgraded one level) |
| LOW | deny term inside `.bib` (allowed: self-citations stay in the bibliography with real authors, referred to in the third person); "camera-ready"/"de-anonymised" wording; Creator/Producer metadata (informational) |

## Manual checks the script cannot do

- Self-citations are written in the third person ("Example et al. [12] showed")
  and critiqued like any other work; not omitted, not "anonymised" in the bib.
- No "blinded" citation that is obviously the authors' own when a third-person
  citation would do (follow the venue's policy; IACR generally prefers third person).
- Supplementary/artifact README avoids "our prior paper", "same codebase as",
  "inherited from our earlier implementation".
- Anonymous mirrors (e.g. anonymous.4open.science) are refreshed after the last
  push, and each file URL returns HTTP 200 (a private source repository can make the
  mirror return 403). Check with `curl -sI`.
- Figures: no screenshots with usernames, terminal prompts, or window titles.
- Experiment logs in the artifact: hostnames, IPs, usernames stripped.
- Overleaf/Git history is not shared with reviewers.
- Submission form fields (conflicts, abstract) are separate from the PDF; the PDF
  itself must be anonymous.

## Remediation snippets

```latex
% Empty PDF metadata (hyperref)
\hypersetup{pdfauthor={},pdftitle={},pdfsubject={},pdfkeywords={},pdfcreator={},pdfproducer={}}
% Avoid embedding figure source paths (pdfTeX)
\pdfsuppressptexinfo=-1   % place in the preamble (pdfTeX >= 1.40.15)
```

```bash
# strip metadata from a finished PDF (qpdf/exiftool if available)
exiftool -all:all= -overwrite_original main.pdf && qpdf --linearize main.pdf main_clean.pdf
# zip an artifact without VCS data
git archive --format=zip -o artifact.zip HEAD   # or: zip -r artifact.zip artifact -x '*.git*'
```

Record the final clean run (command + summary line + PDF sha256) in `SUBMISSION.md`.

From Noi1r/crypto-paper-writing, MIT.

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