Check whether text is already searchable.
Open a copy of your PDF and try selecting or searching for a word. A PDF can look like text while containing only a page image.
Run text recognition.
Use OCR on the scanned pages and choose the language that matches the document. Processing happens on your computer.
Search and compare.
Search for a word you can clearly see in the original page. Copy a short passage and compare it with the scan, especially names, dates and numbers.
Save and check again.
Save a new PDF, close it and reopen the saved copy. Repeat the search and confirm the page image is still complete and readable.
A useful distinction
Recognition depends on scan quality and language. OCR can misread words and does not guarantee accurate text, accessibility compliance or faithful Word/EPUB conversion.
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