Instantly strip hidden photo information — GPS coordinates, device fingerprints, timestamps, and AI generation tags — before sharing any image online. Processed entirely in your browser. Free, private, no account needed.
Load a photo to scan and erase its embedded data
Most online privacy tools send your image to a remote server for processing, which means a copy of your photo exists — however briefly — on infrastructure you don't control. Our tool uses the browser's native HTML5 Canvas API to redraw the image pixel-by-pixel onto a blank canvas element. Because the canvas has no concept of metadata containers, the exported file contains only raw colour values. No EXIF, no IPTC, no XMP, no AI tags — just the picture.
Every image captured by a modern smartphone or camera contains a structured data wrapper alongside the visible pixels. This wrapper — governed by the EXIF standard (Exchangeable Image File Format) — records dozens of technical and contextual fields automatically. Most people share images without knowing this hidden layer exists.
A single unprocessed photo can expose: the precise GPS coordinates of where you stood (accurate to within metres), the exact make, model, and serial number of your device, the date and time of capture, exposure settings, and even software signatures that reveal which app or AI tool generated or edited the image. When that photo reaches a social feed, a marketplace listing, or an email inbox, all of this travels with it.
⚠️ Real risk: A property photo taken inside your home and posted on a marketplace can contain GPS data precise enough to identify your street address. A candid shared in a private group can carry your device's serial number. Cleaning image metadata before sharing is a simple, two-second habit that eliminates these vectors entirely.
The canvas re-rendering pipeline strips every metadata layer simultaneously, not just GPS tags in isolation. Here is what disappears:
| # | Action | What Happens Under the Hood |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upload, drag, or paste your photo | File is read into browser memory via FileReader API — nothing is transmitted |
| 2 | Metadata scan runs automatically | EXIF.js counts all embedded tags and flags GPS presence for the status panel |
| 3 | Canvas re-rendering executes | Pixel array is drawn onto a blank canvas element; all metadata containers are abandoned |
| 4 | Download the metadata-free export | JPEG at 95% quality or lossless PNG with transparency — correct extension auto-applied |
To delete camera metadata from photos on an iPhone, open this page in Safari, tap the upload zone, and choose a photo from your Camera Roll. The scan and re-render complete within a few seconds, and you can save the cleaned file back to Photos. The whole workflow takes under 10 seconds.
While iOS 15 and later can suppress location sharing for certain share-sheet actions, that only removes the GPS field in specific scenarios — it does not strip device serial numbers, AI generation tags, or editing software identifiers. This browser tool performs a full metadata-free image export regardless of iOS version.
Android users can achieve the same result in Chrome, Firefox, or Samsung Internet. The process is identical: open the page, upload your gallery photo, download the stripped version to your Downloads folder. No permissions beyond file access are required, and no background data collection occurs.
This is especially valuable before sharing photos on WhatsApp, Telegram, or Instagram, where metadata stripping behaviour varies by platform and is not guaranteed on all client versions.
As AI image generation becomes widespread, the embedded provenance data inside these files is increasingly scrutinised. Platforms, agencies, and publications often require images to be free of AI origin markers. Our canvas pipeline is inherently suited to this: because it re-renders pixels rather than editing tags, the output has no identifiable link to the generating tool. This makes the workflow practical for designers, marketers, and content creators who use AI in their pipeline but need to deliver neutral, attribution-free files.
| Method | Strips All Fields | Erases GPS | Clears AI Tags | Free | No Upload |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This Tool (Canvas Method) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| iOS Share Sheet (iOS 15+) | Partial | ✔ | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Android Google Photos | Partial | ✔ | ✘ | ✔ | ✘ |
| Server-Upload Online Tools | ✔ | ✔ | Varies | Often paid | ✘ |
| Desktop Software | ✔ | ✔ | Varies | Often paid | Requires install |
Stripping hidden photo information is appropriate any time an image will leave a controlled environment. Specific scenarios where it matters most:
This privacy tool is one part of a broader set of GPS and metadata utilities. If you want to inspect what is actually embedded before deciding whether to clean it, the Online Photo EXIF Viewer displays every tag in a readable format. To plot GPS coordinates from any photo onto a map, use the Photo Location Finder.
If your workflow runs in the opposite direction — adding verifiable location data to photos rather than removing it — the GPS Map Camera Online tool stamps live coordinates, a map tile, date, and time directly onto your image. The GPS Map Camera Editor lets you customise stamp appearance and edit location values. For batch work, the Bulk GPS Photo Stamper processes up to 20 images simultaneously. Guides, tutorials, and privacy explainers are published regularly on the GPS Camera Blog.