How to check the metadata of a PDF or photo
- Add one or more PDFs or photos (JPG, PNG or iPhone HEIC). Files added together are also compared with each other.
- If you have a file you know is real from the same source, add it as a known-good file to compare how the files are built.
- Read each check: “Nothing unusual”, “Worth a look” with the reason, or “Not checked” with the reason. Download the summary report to keep it.
Good to know
The checks look at how a file was made, not at what it says. They show which programs made the file, whether it was saved again later (and what changed, with the first and final versions side by side), its dates and time zone, the fonts on each page, how each page is built, the pictures inside with their fingerprints, digital signatures, Content Credentials (C2PA, a newer standard for recording how a file was made), and for photos how many of the usual camera details are there.
What it can’t do: it can’t tell whether the content is true. A careful person can copy the details of a real file, so a file where nothing looks unusual is not proof that it is real, and “Worth a look” is not proof that anything is wrong: many ordinary files are saved twice or made with everyday programs. It doesn’t check sums, totals or ID numbers, it can’t tell whether text was written by AI, and it doesn’t check whether a digital signature’s certificate is trusted.
These are signs, not proof, and the decision is yours. Your files are read on your device. Only if you choose, a short fingerprint of a known-good file, or of the files you check, is kept in this browser so later files can be compared with it; you can clear it at any time.
Questions
What does “Worth a look” mean?
That something in the file is unusual and worth a second look, for example a later save by an editing program, or a few numbers in a different font from the rest of the page. It is not proof of anything: there is often an ordinary reason.
What is a known-good file?
A file you trust from the same source, for example a statement you downloaded yourself from the same bank, or a letter you know came from the same office. Files made by the same system are built the same way, so the check compares their structure, fonts and logo pictures.
Can it check scans and photos?
Partly. A scan or photo is a picture of paper, so the file can’t show how the document itself was made. The check reads the camera or scanner details, the dates and any Content Credentials, and compares the file with the others you added.
Is anything uploaded?
No. Every check runs in your browser on your device. Nothing is sent to us or anyone else.
Page last reviewed 22 October 2026.