Glossary · Privacy
EXIF metadata
EXIF metadata is the block of descriptive data a camera or phone writes into a photo file: date and time, camera model, settings, and often the GPS location where the picture was taken. It travels with the file when it is copied or sent as an original, and it can reveal far more than the picture itself. Many platforms strip it on upload; many others do not.
Updated November 6, 2026 · 2 min read
What is stored in EXIF?
| Field | What it can reveal |
|---|---|
| DateTimeOriginal | When the photo was taken, to the second |
| GPSLatitude, GPSLongitude | Where it was taken, often to a few metres |
| Make, Model, Software | The phone or camera, which can link photos to one device |
| Thumbnail | A small embedded copy that can survive cropping of the main image |
| Orientation, lens, exposure | Technical settings, rarely sensitive |
Why does it matter for privacy?
A photo sent as an original file carries its location. That has exposed home addresses, routines and identities of people who believed they shared only a picture. The standard that defines the format, CIPA DC-008, does not require any of these fields, but phones fill them by default.
Which platforms strip it?
- Most large social platforms re-encode uploads and drop EXIF, including the location.
- Messaging apps vary: sending "as document" or "original quality" often keeps the metadata, sending as a photo often strips it.
- Email attachments, cloud links and many forums keep the file exactly as uploaded.
- Responsible search engines strip metadata from the query photo before processing it; FaceSearch states that it does.
How do you remove it?
Phones offer a toggle to remove location when sharing; desktop tools such as ExifTool can strip every field; re-encoding a file through an image library usually drops it. A screenshot of the photo carries none of the original metadata, which is one reason screenshots are a safe way to submit a picture to a search engine.
Does EXIF help find the source of a photo?
Sometimes. A unique camera serial number or an original timestamp can tie a copied photo to its first publication, which investigators use in provenance work. The newer C2PA content credentials standard is designed to carry provenance deliberately and verifiably, unlike EXIF, which is easy to edit.
Questions
Does a face search engine read my photo's location?
Engines that strip metadata before processing, as FaceSearch states it does, never see it. Check each engine's privacy page.
Does a screenshot have EXIF?
It has the screenshot's own minimal metadata, not the original photo's camera or GPS data.
Sources
- 1.CIPA DC-008-2012, Exchangeable image file format for digital still cameras (Exif 2.3) (checked December 1, 2012)
- 2.ExifTool by Phil Harvey, tag reference (checked November 6, 2026)
Entry reviewed November 6, 2026. Found an error? Tell us.
Related entries
- Term Re-encoding Re-encoding defined: decoding an uploaded image and writing a clean new file, why services do it (metadata removal, safety, normalisation), and its effect.
- Term C2PA content credentials C2PA content credentials defined: signed provenance metadata recording how an image was made and edited, who supports it, and what it does and does not prove.
- Concept Image provenance and metadata What EXIF metadata, platform identifiers and C2PA content credentials reveal about a photo, who strips them, and how provenance helps or fails when tracing an image.
- Engine FaceSearch (facesearch.cc) FaceSearch (facesearch.cc): normal and deep search over the public web, a free first search, three paid plans, email removal, apps. By this wiki's publisher.
Cite this entry
FaceSearch Wiki editors. "EXIF metadata". FaceSearch Wiki, updated November 6, 2026. https://facesearch.wiki/glossary/exif-metadata/