The problem with upload converters
Most "PUB to PDF" websites work by uploading your file to their servers, converting it there and sending the PDF back. For a file with pupils' names, that is sharing personal data with a company. Under UK GDPR, the Irish Data Protection Act and the EU GDPR, schools are expected to know where pupils' data goes and why. Many schools simply don't allow it, and your data protection lead may never have heard of the site.
How this page is different
Rescue Pub Files does the conversion inside your web browser. The file is read from your computer and converted on your computer; the PDF is made on your computer. Our server only delivers the web page and the converter program, the same way any website delivers its pages. It never receives the file.
The one thing the page tells our server about a file is whether it opened, and if not, a short reason like "damaged" or "not a Publisher file", so we can fix problems. It never sends the file, its name, its size or anything in it.
What to tell your data protection lead
- Files are processed locally in the browser; no file content is transmitted to Rescue Pub Files or anyone else.
- The site sets no cookies and has no advertising. See the privacy page.
- It can be checked: load the page, disconnect from the network, and the conversion still works.
- The converter is built from open-source code (libmspub, from the LibreOffice project), and our licence notices say where to get it.
Good habits for the clear-out
- Only convert what you need to keep. Your school's retention policy may say old class lists should be deleted, not converted.
- Save the PDFs to your school's approved storage, not to a personal laptop.
- Work on a school computer if possible. The page needs no installation and no admin rights.