Google plans to help you differentiate between real and fake photos

Google plans to introduce technology that will identify whether a photo was taken with a camera, edited with software like Photoshop, or created with a generative AI model. In the coming months, Google's search results will include an updated “About this image” feature, allowing people to know whether an image was created or edited with an AI tool.

The system Google is using is part of the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), one of the largest groups trying to address AI-generated imagery. C2PA's authentication is a technical standard that includes information about where images originate and it works across both hardware and software to create a digital trail. Amazon, Microsoft, Adobe, Arm, OpenAI, Intel, Truepic and Google have all supported C2PA authentication, but adoption has been slow. Google's integration into search results will be the first big test for the initiative.

Google helped develop the latest C2PA technical standard (version 2.1) and will use it with the upcoming C2PA Trust List, which allows platforms like Google Search to confirm the origin of content. “For example, if data shows that an image was taken by a specific camera model, the Trust List helps verify that this information is accurate,” says Laurie Richardson, vice president of trust and security at Google.

Google also plans to integrate C2PA metadata into its advertising system. “Our goal is to enhance this over time and use C2PA signals to communicate how we enforce key policies,” says Richardson. “We're also exploring ways to relay C2PA information to viewers on YouTube when content is captured with a camera, and we'll have further updates on this later this year.”

While Google is one of the first major tech companies to adopt the C2PA authentication standard, there are a lot of adoption and interoperability challenges to implementing it across a wide variety of hardware and software. Only a few cameras from Leica and Sony support the C2PA open technology standard, which adds camera settings metadata as well as data and location of where the image was taken to photos. Nikon and Canon have both pledged to adopt the C2PA standard, and we're still waiting to hear whether Apple and Google will implement C2PA support in iPhones and Android devices.

Adobe's Photoshop and Lightroom apps can add C2PA data, but Affinity Photo, Gimp and many other apps do not. There are also challenges with how to view the data once it's added to a photo, as most major online platforms don't offer labels. However, Google's adoption in search results may encourage others to introduce similar labels.

Richardson admits that “establishing and signalling the origin of content remains a complex challenge, involving a variety of considerations depending on the product or service.” “And while we know there is no silver bullet solution for all content online, working together with others in the industry is key to creating sustainable and interoperable solutions.”