anonymize

[ uh-non-uh-mahyz ]

verb (used with object)

, a·non·y·mized, a·non·y·miz·ing.

1. to block or eliminate identifying information from (test results, data, authorship, etc.), especially for purposes of statistical analysis, product appraisal, or personal privacy; to make anonymous:

   anonymizing cancer patients’ medical histories for our research files; software that helps you anonymize your online activity.

anonymize

/ əˈnɒnɪˌmaɪz /

verb

1. tr to carry out or organize in such a way as to preserve anonymity

   anonymized AIDS screening

Other Words From

• a·non·y·mi·za·tion noun
• a·non·y·miz·er noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of anonymize¹

First recorded in 1855–60 for an earlier sense; the current sense was first recorded in 1970–75; anonym(ous) ( def ) + -ize ( def )

Example Sentences

The give-to-get model asks brands to contribute permissioned first-party data, which the cooperative anonymizes and aggregates, architecting and maintaining a collective analytic powerhouse that benefits all members.

From Digiday

Those signals are then anonymized into segments across iOS and Android devices for the likes of Subway to buy.

From Digiday

In their paper, the authors suggest that burying this signal—anonymizing the donation—is another way to signal the same thing, but in a way that’s harder to fake, or more difficult for receivers to find dishonest.

From Nautilus

Personal data, for instance, would need to be anonymized before companies were granted access.

From Fortune

So basically the, what they say is the data is anonymized to the point that you don’t know where the data is coming from.

From MIT Technology Review

We all had the same basic ParanoidXbox install, so we could all anonymize our pictures.

From Project Gutenberg