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Glossary

EXIF: camera metadata and what AI tools put in it

EXIF (Exchangeable image file format) is the CIPA standard for storing capture metadata such as camera model, lens, exposure, date and GPS in a TIFF-structured block inside JPEG, TIFF, WebP and PNG files, and some AI tools reuse its UserComment tag to store generation parameters.

Definitions and isGenAI behaviour as of October 2026. Updated .

Open the EXIF viewerFrequently asked questions
Code-drawn illustration for EXIF

Illustration · PNG file

  1. Signature + IHDR
  2. iTXt XML:com.adobe.xmp
  3. tEXt parameters
  4. tEXt prompt / workflow
  5. tEXt invokeai_metadata
  6. eXIfrecord
  7. caBX C2PA manifest
  8. IDAT pixels
  9. IEND

Camera record read

Make, model, date and software, tag by tag.

Every readable EXIF field is listed with the tag it came from. Missing EXIF proves nothing either way.

Open the EXIF viewer →
Camera record read: where this record sits inside a PNG file and what the isGenAI report says about it. The picture is a code-drawn illustration.

What EXIF records

EXIF is a directory of numbered tags in TIFF byte order, carried in JPEG APP1, WebP’s EXIF chunk, PNG’s eXIf chunk and TIFF’s own directory. Typical tags are Make, Model, DateTimeOriginal, ExposureTime, FocalLength, Software and the GPS sub-directory. AUTOMATIC1111 writes its generation parameters into the UserComment tag (0x9286) for JPEG and WebP output.

EXIF is unsigned. Any editor can rewrite it, and most platforms remove it.

How isGenAI uses EXIF

The EXIF viewer reads JPEG, PNG, WebP and classic TIFF in your browser, validates the container first and lists the readable fields with JSON export; nothing is uploaded. The AI image detector reads EXIF on the server, quotes AI statements found in it and reads AUTOMATIC1111 records from UserComment, requiring a single unambiguous comment with a valid encoding. Camera fields alone are never treated as proof of a camera: a generator or editor can write any Make and Model.

EXIF and privacy

GPS and timestamps in EXIF can expose where and when a photo was taken. The metadata remover rebuilds a clean PNG in your browser and lists what it removed, which is the right tool before sharing, and the wrong tool before checking.

EXIF dates deserve care as well: DateTimeOriginal is written by the device clock, which may be wrong or deliberately changed, and offsets are optional. The EXIF viewer shows the values exactly as stored and does not convert or correct them.

How to use this term when checking a file

  1. Upload the original file to the AI image detector or the tool named on the page.
  2. Find the finding that uses this term under “How we checked” and read the source field it names.
  3. Weigh it by kind: a signed record, a declared field, a saved prompt and a matching copy are different strengths of evidence.
  4. Remember that absence of a record is not evidence of a human author.

Open the EXIF viewer

Frequently asked questions

Does EXIF show whether an image is AI-generated?

Only when a tool wrote something there: AUTOMATIC1111 parameters in UserComment or an AI statement in a text tag. Camera fields can be written by anyone.

Which formats carry EXIF?

JPEG, TIFF, WebP, PNG (eXIf chunk), HEIC and AVIF. GIF and BMP have no EXIF container.

Can isGenAI read EXIF without uploading?

Yes. The EXIF viewer runs entirely in your browser; the AI image detector reads EXIF on the server for the full evidence report.

Does a social media download keep EXIF?

Almost never. See the platform pages for what each service strips.

Sources

Definitions follow the published standards linked above; the isGenAI behaviour described is the deployed checker as of October 2026.