Free Photo Forensics Tool

18 image views, with clear controls

Start with the original view and zoom into the area you are examining. Compare ELA, mean-filter and median-filter noise residuals, grayscale, RGB channels, brightness, levels and gamma, auto contrast, histogram equalization, threshold, edges, color spread, invert, transparency and supported PNG hidden pixels. Settings appear beside the selected method. These views help you inspect differences; they do not identify an editor or determine whether a scene is true.

The displayed view is derived from pixels decoded by your browser. Camera processing, color conversion, resampling and ordinary image detail can affect it. The report records the chosen view, settings and analysis dimensions.

File structure and embedded text

Open the file-structure panel for original byte offsets, JPEG markers, quantization tables and scan headers, or PNG and WebP chunk boundaries. The strings panel lists bounded printable ASCII runs from the original file. A string can be incidental compressed data, rather than meaningful text or proof of an editing program.

Structure inspection stops at its stated bounds and reports incomplete coverage. It is not a full codec, checksum or steganography examination. Collected strings and offsets remain in the downloads and can contain private information.

JPEG recompression differences

Error level analysis, or ELA, compares the decoded JPEG with a new JPEG made in the browser at your selected quality. Gain makes those differences more visible. The original file is not overwritten.

Bright edges, texture and uneven differences can occur in ordinary photographs. Resaving, cropping and social-media processing can change the result. An ELA view does not locate a proven edit or distinguish a genuine photo from an AI-generated image. ELA is unavailable for PNG and WebP inputs.

Metadata and the exact file hash

Metadata extraction uses ExifTool by Phil Harvey in your browser. The report retains the available grouped tags, repeated fields and readable and raw values, including camera settings, dates, software, GPS, XMP and IPTC when the file contains them.

The report distinguishes embedded metadata from file-container details, browser observations and derived values. A SHA-256 hash identifies the supplied file bytes. It does not prove how the photo was captured, its earlier history or the truth of the scene.

Partial extraction is marked as partial. A missing field in incomplete results remains unknown. You can also inspect a broader range of file formats with the Free Metadata Analyzer.

Your photo stays on your computer

Your selected photo, filename, hash, metadata, notes and report are not uploaded to GDF or an outside analysis service. The page and parser files download to your browser; the inspection runs locally.

This input page does not load optional analytics or advertising. It does not call an external AI service, locate GPS coordinates on a remote map or attach results to a contact inquiry.

Clear removes the displayed inspection and stops its workers. It does not delete the original file or reports you already downloaded. Those reports may contain private details, including GPS or notes.

Download the collected results

Save a paginated PDF or download CSV, HTML and JSON. The report keeps the input hash, browser inspection time, tool and parser versions, method settings, analysis dimensions, collected metadata, observations, notes and warnings. Display filters do not shorten the collected export.

The browser clock is not an independently verified timestamp. CSV uses reversible json: cells to preserve types and repeated values; JSON retains the original structured data. Image views are derived working material, separate from the original bytes.

Formats and browser limits

Choose one JPEG, PNG or supported WebP file up to 20 MiB and 16 million decoded pixels. Larger images are stopped rather than automatically reduced. The file’s recognized format is checked rather than relying only on its extension. Image inspection is limited to the browser-decoded still image; it is not a complete animation, embedded-preview, HDR or high-bit-depth examination.

The report states the decoded and analysis dimensions and unavailable checks. A device or time limit can stop processing. There is no silent transfer to a server if your browser cannot finish.

Metadata keeps its existing parser-loading, inspection and output limits. PDF exports also have record, text, page, size and time bounds. Export stops with an explanation if a bound is exceeded rather than returning a shortened report.

Preserve the source and check the finding

Keep the original with its source, collection date and handling context. Work on copies and record the steps you take. Local processing protects the input from an analysis upload; it does not supply chain of custody, forensic certification or legal admissibility.

SWGDE Best Practices for Image Authentication and SWGDE image compression guidance explain why image authentication depends on method limits and the wider evidence. These references do not certify this browser tool.

Continue the examination

Photo Analyzer gives a guided first review. Reselect the file when opening the other tool. For two to four copies of the same file, use Metadata Comparison to compare collected properties and supported content.

If the image is disputed, Media Authentication and AI and Deepfake Analysis describe professional examination services and their scope.

Hidden pixels reads the original stored colors beneath fully transparent pixels in supported 8-bit, noninterlaced RGBA or grayscale-alpha PNG files, up to 4 million pixels. Files with PNG orientation metadata are outside this view. It does not recover deleted pixels, inspect arbitrary hidden messages or prove deliberate concealment. Version 1.0.0-beta.1. Free to use. Browse all free tools.