Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to common questions about Ciphertides, our tools, privacy practices, and technical details.
General
What is Ciphertides?
Ciphertides is a collection of free online tools for PDF management, password security, data encoding, and network diagnostics. Our tools are designed to be fast, easy to use, and privacy-focused.
Is Ciphertides free to use?
Yes, all tools on Ciphertides are completely free with no usage limits, no premium tiers, and no account required. We sustain the site through non-intrusive advertising.
Do I need to create an account?
No. Every tool on Ciphertides is immediately accessible without registration, login, or email verification. Simply open a tool and start using it.
How does Ciphertides make money?
We display non-intrusive advertisements on our pages. This allows us to keep all tools free for everyone while covering hosting and development costs.
Tools
What PDF tools are available?
We offer tools to merge PDFs, split PDF pages, convert PDFs to images, convert images to PDFs, rotate PDF pages, and annotate PDFs with freehand drawings. All PDF processing happens in your browser.
What password tools do you offer?
We provide a Password Strength Checker that analyzes your password against multiple criteria and gives a strength rating with estimated crack time, and a Password Generator that creates cryptographically secure random passwords with customizable length and character options.
What encoding and hashing tools are available?
Our encoding tools include a Base64 Encoder/Decoder for converting text to and from Base64 format, and a Hash Generator that produces MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, and SHA-512 hashes from any text input.
Can I use these tools on mobile devices?
Yes. All tools are built with responsive design and work on smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers. The PDF tools support touch input for drag-and-drop reordering, and the annotation tool works with touchscreens and styluses.
Are there file size limits?
Our tools do not impose artificial file size limits. However, since processing happens in your browser, very large files may be limited by your device's available memory. For most documents and typical use cases, this is not an issue.
Privacy & Security
Are my files uploaded to your servers?
No. The vast majority of our tools — including all PDF tools, password tools, and encoding tools — run entirely in your browser using client-side JavaScript. Your files and data are processed on your device and never sent to any server.
Which tools require server-side processing?
Only tools that need to query external services, such as DNS Lookup, require server-side processing. For these tools, we send only the domain name or query to our server, process the request, and return the result. We do not log or store your queries.
Is my password safe when using the Password Checker?
Yes. The Password Strength Checker analyzes your password entirely in your browser. Your password is never transmitted over the network or stored anywhere. You can verify this by checking your browser's network tab — no requests are made when you type a password.
Do you use cookies or tracking?
We use minimal cookies required for the site to function and for our advertising partners. We do not use analytics tracking cookies, and we do not build user profiles. See our Privacy Policy for full details.
Technical
What browsers are supported?
Ciphertides works on all modern browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. We use standard web APIs like the Web Crypto API and Canvas API. For the best experience, use an up-to-date version of your preferred browser.
How does browser-based PDF processing work?
Our PDF tools use JavaScript libraries that parse and manipulate PDF file structures directly in your browser. When you upload a file, it is read into browser memory, processed using the library, and the result is made available as a downloadable file. No server communication occurs.
What makes the Password Generator cryptographically secure?
Our Password Generator uses the Web Crypto API (crypto.getRandomValues), which gathers entropy from your operating system to produce cryptographically secure random numbers. This is the same randomness source used by security-critical applications and is far superior to JavaScript's Math.random().
Can I use Ciphertides offline?
Client-side tools (PDF, password, encoding) require an initial page load but do not need an active internet connection once loaded. Server-side tools like DNS Lookup require connectivity to query external DNS servers.