diff --git a/context.go b/context.go
index 53f010f80..53338c2a2 100644
--- a/context.go
+++ b/context.go
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ import (
 	"net/http"
 
 	"go.elastic.co/apm/internal/apmhttputil"
+	"go.elastic.co/apm/internal/wildcard"
 	"go.elastic.co/apm/model"
 )
 
@@ -29,16 +30,17 @@ import (
 //
 // NOTE this is entirely unrelated to the standard library's context.Context.
 type Context struct {
-	model            model.Context
-	request          model.Request
-	requestBody      model.RequestBody
-	requestSocket    model.RequestSocket
-	response         model.Response
-	user             model.User
-	service          model.Service
-	serviceFramework model.Framework
-	captureHeaders   bool
-	captureBodyMask  CaptureBodyMode
+	model               model.Context
+	request             model.Request
+	requestBody         model.RequestBody
+	requestSocket       model.RequestSocket
+	response            model.Response
+	user                model.User
+	service             model.Service
+	serviceFramework    model.Framework
+	captureHeaders      bool
+	captureBodyMask     CaptureBodyMode
+	sanitizedFieldNames wildcard.Matchers
 }
 
 func (c *Context) build() *model.Context {
@@ -52,6 +54,15 @@ func (c *Context) build() *model.Context {
 	default:
 		return nil
 	}
+	if len(c.sanitizedFieldNames) != 0 {
+		if c.model.Request != nil {
+			sanitizeRequest(c.model.Request, c.sanitizedFieldNames)
+		}
+		if c.model.Response != nil {
+			sanitizeResponse(c.model.Response, c.sanitizedFieldNames)
+		}
+
+	}
 	return &c.model
 }
 
diff --git a/error.go b/error.go
index 14023f4be..8ed096859 100644
--- a/error.go
+++ b/error.go
@@ -148,6 +148,7 @@ func (t *Tracer) newError() *Error {
 	if e.recording {
 		e.Timestamp = time.Now()
 		e.Context.captureHeaders = instrumentationConfig.captureHeaders
+		e.Context.sanitizedFieldNames = instrumentationConfig.sanitizedFieldNames
 		e.stackTraceLimit = instrumentationConfig.stackTraceLimit
 	}
 
diff --git a/modelwriter.go b/modelwriter.go
index be0a37e3e..65fcfcdc8 100644
--- a/modelwriter.go
+++ b/modelwriter.go
@@ -125,15 +125,6 @@ func (w *modelWriter) buildModelTransaction(out *model.Transaction, tx *Transact
 	if sampled {
 		out.Context = td.Context.build()
 	}
-
-	if len(td.sanitizedFieldNames) != 0 && out.Context != nil {
-		if out.Context.Request != nil {
-			sanitizeRequest(out.Context.Request, td.sanitizedFieldNames)
-		}
-		if out.Context.Response != nil {
-			sanitizeResponse(out.Context.Response, td.sanitizedFieldNames)
-		}
-	}
 }
 
 func (w *modelWriter) buildModelSpan(out *model.Span, span *Span, sd *SpanData) {
diff --git a/sanitizer_test.go b/sanitizer_test.go
index 665a3c949..9b5af1cab 100644
--- a/sanitizer_test.go
+++ b/sanitizer_test.go
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ import (
 	"net/http"
 	"testing"
 
+	"github.com/pkg/errors"
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
 
@@ -43,34 +44,46 @@ func TestSanitizeRequestResponse(t *testing.T) {
 		req.AddCookie(c)
 	}
 
-	tx, _, _ := apmtest.WithTransaction(func(ctx context.Context) {
+	tx, _, errors := apmtest.WithTransaction(func(ctx context.Context) {
+		e := apm.CaptureError(ctx, errors.New("boom!"))
+		defer e.Send()
+
 		tx := apm.TransactionFromContext(ctx)
 		tx.Context.SetHTTPRequest(req)
+		e.Context.SetHTTPRequest(req)
 
 		h := make(http.Header)
 		h.Add("Set-Cookie", (&http.Cookie{Name: "foo", Value: "bar"}).String())
 		h.Add("Set-Cookie", (&http.Cookie{Name: "baz", Value: "qux"}).String())
 		tx.Context.SetHTTPResponseHeaders(h)
 		tx.Context.SetHTTPStatusCode(http.StatusTeapot)
+		e.Context.SetHTTPResponseHeaders(h)
+		e.Context.SetHTTPStatusCode(http.StatusTeapot)
 	})
 
-	assert.Equal(t, tx.Context.Request.Cookies, model.Cookies{
-		{Name: "Custom-Credit-Card-Number", Value: "[REDACTED]"},
-		{Name: "secret", Value: "[REDACTED]"},
-		{Name: "sessionid", Value: "[REDACTED]"},
-		{Name: "user_id", Value: "456"},
-	})
-	assert.Equal(t, model.Headers{{
-		Key:    "Authorization",
-		Values: []string{"[REDACTED]"},
-	}}, tx.Context.Request.Headers)
-
-	// NOTE: the response includes multiple Set-Cookie headers,
-	// but we only report a single "[REDACTED]" value.
-	assert.Equal(t, model.Headers{{
-		Key:    "Set-Cookie",
-		Values: []string{"[REDACTED]"},
-	}}, tx.Context.Response.Headers)
+	checkContext := func(context *model.Context) {
+		assert.Equal(t, context.Request.Cookies, model.Cookies{
+			{Name: "Custom-Credit-Card-Number", Value: "[REDACTED]"},
+			{Name: "secret", Value: "[REDACTED]"},
+			{Name: "sessionid", Value: "[REDACTED]"},
+			{Name: "user_id", Value: "456"},
+		})
+		assert.Equal(t, model.Headers{{
+			Key:    "Authorization",
+			Values: []string{"[REDACTED]"},
+		}}, context.Request.Headers)
+
+		// NOTE: the response includes multiple Set-Cookie headers,
+		// but we only report a single "[REDACTED]" value.
+		assert.Equal(t, model.Headers{{
+			Key:    "Set-Cookie",
+			Values: []string{"[REDACTED]"},
+		}}, context.Response.Headers)
+	}
+	checkContext(tx.Context)
+	for _, e := range errors {
+		checkContext(e.Context)
+	}
 }
 
 func TestSetSanitizedFieldNamesNone(t *testing.T) {
diff --git a/transaction.go b/transaction.go
index 1ab427995..347bc5e05 100644
--- a/transaction.go
+++ b/transaction.go
@@ -23,8 +23,6 @@ import (
 	"math/rand"
 	"sync"
 	"time"
-
-	"go.elastic.co/apm/internal/wildcard"
 )
 
 // StartTransaction returns a new Transaction with the specified
@@ -68,7 +66,7 @@ func (t *Tracer) StartTransactionOptions(name, transactionType string, opts Tran
 	tx.stackTraceLimit = instrumentationConfig.stackTraceLimit
 	tx.Context.captureHeaders = instrumentationConfig.captureHeaders
 	tx.propagateLegacyHeader = instrumentationConfig.propagateLegacyHeader
-	tx.sanitizedFieldNames = instrumentationConfig.sanitizedFieldNames
+	tx.Context.sanitizedFieldNames = instrumentationConfig.sanitizedFieldNames
 	tx.breakdownMetricsEnabled = t.breakdownMetrics.enabled
 
 	var root bool
@@ -346,7 +344,6 @@ type TransactionData struct {
 	stackTraceLimit         int
 	breakdownMetricsEnabled bool
 	propagateLegacyHeader   bool
-	sanitizedFieldNames     wildcard.Matchers
 	timestamp               time.Time
 
 	mu            sync.Mutex