Check a photo's Content Credentials before you share it

Before forwarding a surprising photo, check whether it carries a recorded history. This guide uses the free Content Credentials Verify tool (opens in a new tab) and C2PA's explanation (opens in a new tab), with a public AI-image example and a plain test image.

Content Credentials are signed information about a file's origin and edits. They can add useful context, but they do not establish whether the scene or its caption is true.

1. Open the image file

1. Save the image you want to check. If you received a screenshot or a repost, ask for the original file when possible.
2. Open Verify (opens in a new tab) in your browser. You can use this checker without signing in or installing an extension.
3. Choose Select a file from your device and select the image. JPEG, PNG and WebP are among the formats listed on the page.

Use a public or non-confidential image for practice. A result applies to the file you selected.

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Content Credentials Verify file picker with supported image formats.

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Verify's file picker. Cropped screenshot of the Content Authenticity Initiative tool.

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2. Read the AI and editing information

1. If a history appears, read Content summary in the right-hand panel.
2. Under Process, look for App or device used, AI tool used and Actions. The available fields depend on what the creator's tool recorded.
3. If there are earlier items in the history, select them to inspect the information attached to each one.

Our example is the Verify project's public Firefly test image (opens in a new tab). Its panel says it was generated with an AI tool and names Adobe Firefly. That is a recorded disclosure for this example.

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Verify Content summary and Process sections recording AI generation and Adobe Firefly for a public example.

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Content summary and Process for the public Firefly test image. Cropped screenshot of the Content Authenticity Initiative tool.

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3. Check who issued the credential

1. Scroll down the details panel to About this Content Credential.
2. Read Issued by and any trust notice. The issuer may be the software provider; it is not automatically the photographer or copyright owner.
3. If the checker shows a validation warning, keep the result unresolved. Do not turn a warning into an accusation that someone faked the image.

Our example shows Adobe Inc. and Legacy trust. C2PA explains (opens in a new tab) that older trust roots can be treated differently by different validators.

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Verify details identifying Adobe Inc. as issuer and displaying a Legacy trust notice.

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The public example names Adobe Inc. as issuer and shows Legacy trust. Cropped screenshot of the Content Authenticity Initiative tool.

Open full-size image

4. Check the story attached to the image

1. Find the original publisher's page. Compare its caption and context with the version you received.
2. Check whether it actually supports the claimed place, event and timing. An old image can accompany a new claim.
3. If the source is missing or the claim remains unsupported, pause before forwarding it.

This is a suggested checking routine. C2PA describes credentials as one source of context alongside fact-checking; the credential itself does not establish factual accuracy.

If no history appears

In our plain PNG test, Verify returned to the file picker without showing a history. Treat that as no usable history from this check, not a real-or-fake verdict.

Credentials are optional, and embedded information can be removed. Ask for the original file, try the checker again and inspect the source. An absent AI field does not establish that AI was never used.

Sources: Verify (opens in a new tab); Content Authenticity Initiative FAQ (opens in a new tab); C2PA explainer (opens in a new tab); C2PA FAQ (opens in a new tab); Verify source and Apache licence (opens in a new tab).