What are Content Credentials (C2PA)?

Updated 3 November 2026 · 2 min read

Content Credentials are a signed label inside an image that records how it was made and edited. More and more apps add them, sometimes with personal details.

How they work

Content Credentials follow an open standard called C2PA, backed by companies including Adobe, Microsoft and Google. The label is stored inside the file and signed with a digital certificate, a bit like a seal. If someone changes the label or the image afterwards, checking tools can tell.

Who adds them

• Adobe apps such as Photoshop, Lightroom and Firefly.
• AI image tools, including ChatGPT’s image generation.
• Some newer cameras from brands such as Leica, Sony and Nikon, and some phones.

What’s inside

• Which app or device created the image.
• Whether it was made or edited with AI, using standard terms like “trained algorithmic media”.
• The edits made, such as cropping or colour changes, and earlier versions.
• Optionally, the creator’s name and linked accounts.
• Who signed the label, and when.

How to check them

Drop an image into the ScrubPic Content Credentials checker to see what the label says in plain words, without uploading it. For a full check of the digital signature, use the official Content Credentials Verify site.

Good to know

• No label doesn’t prove anything. Many apps don’t add one, and labels are lost when an image is screenshotted or re-saved.
• Watermarks are separate. Some AI tools also hide an invisible watermark in the pixels. That isn’t part of Content Credentials.
• Platforms read them. Some social networks use Content Credentials to show labels such as “AI info” next to posts.

A privacy note

If you connected your name or social media accounts to Content Credentials in an app like Adobe Photoshop, they can travel with every image you export. Check what the label says before posting. If you remove it, remember that some platforms ask you to say when content is AI-generated.