What Is EXIF Data? What Your Photos Reveal
EXIF data stores camera, date and often GPS location inside your photos. Learn what it contains, who can read it and how to remove it before sharing.
By PictureToLink Team · · 9 min read
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EXIF data is information your camera or phone saves inside a photo file alongside the picture itself: the device make and model, the date and time, camera settings such as shutter speed and ISO, which way up the photo was taken and, very often, the GPS coordinates of where you were standing. Anyone who receives the original file can read it with free tools. Before you share a photo publicly, check whether it carries a location, and remove the metadata if it does.
EXIF in one minute
EXIF stands for Exchangeable Image File Format. It is a standard for storing descriptive data inside image files, maintained by the Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA) in Japan as standard DC-008. CIPA's standards history page lists Exif version 3.1 as the most recent release.
A few points make EXIF easier to understand:
- It travels with the file. EXIF is not stored in your phone's settings or in the cloud. It is part of the photo file, so it goes wherever the file goes: email attachments, USB sticks, cloud folders and file transfers.
- It is invisible in normal viewing. You only see it if you open a photo's info panel or use a metadata viewer.
- It is common in JPEG and HEIC photos. Most cameras and phones write it automatically. Other formats such as PNG and WebP can also carry metadata, though screenshots and graphics usually carry much less.
- It is not the only kind of photo metadata. Editing apps and photo agencies also use XMP and IPTC metadata, which can hold captions, keywords, copyright notices and editing history. "Photo metadata" or "image metadata" covers all of these. EXIF is the part your camera writes.
EXIF exists for good reasons. Photo apps use it to sort pictures by date, show them on a map and display them the right way up. Photographers use it to learn from their camera settings. The privacy problem only arises when a file with this data leaves your hands.
What information does EXIF data contain?
The EXIF fields depend on the device, but a photo straight from a modern phone typically records the make and model, the date and time it was taken, exposure settings such as shutter speed and ISO, its orientation, the pixel size, the software used and, often, its GPS position.
The table shows what each field reveals:
| Field | Example | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Make and model | Phone or camera brand and model name | Reveals what device you own |
| Date and time taken | The exact second the photo was taken | Can reveal your routine or contradict a story |
| Exposure settings | Shutter speed, aperture (f-number), ISO, focal length, flash | Useful for photographers, harmless for most people |
| Orientation | "Rotate 90° clockwise" | Tells apps which way up to show the photo |
| Image size | Pixel width and height | Harmless |
| GPS position | Latitude, longitude, altitude | Can pinpoint where the photo was taken |
| Software | The app or firmware that saved the file | Can reveal which editor you use |
| Lens information | Lens model on cameras with interchangeable lenses | Mostly harmless |
| Owner or serial fields | Artist name, copyright, body serial number (some cameras) | Can tie photos to a person or a specific camera |
| Embedded thumbnail | A small preview copy of the image | Can show the original if the main image was edited |
That last row is a little-known risk. Some files carry a small preview image inside the EXIF block. If an editing tool changes the main picture but leaves that preview untouched, the preview can still show the uncropped original. Cropping something out of a photo is therefore not a reliable way to hide it if you share the edited file with its metadata intact.
The orientation tag and sideways photos
Phones often save every photo the same way round and use the orientation tag to say how it should be displayed. If a tool removes all metadata without first rotating the pixels, the photo can suddenly appear sideways or upside down. A good metadata remover applies the rotation first. PictureToLink's upload pipeline does exactly that: it rotates each image according to its orientation tag and then discards the metadata.
GPS: the field that matters for privacy
Most EXIF fields are harmless. GPS coordinates are the exception. Apple's personal safety guide explains that when Location Services is on for the Camera app, location coordinates "are embedded into each photo and video", and that people you share them with "may be able to access the location metadata and learn where it was taken."
Phone GPS can be accurate enough to identify a specific building. That means a photo taken at home and posted publicly can reveal your home address, and a series of photos can reveal where you work, where your children go to school or when you are away on holiday.
Situations where location data deserves extra thought:
- Selling things online. Photos of items for sale are usually taken at home.
- Photos of children. Location plus a school uniform or a regular park is more information than most parents mean to share.
- Dating profiles and public social accounts. Strangers see these.
- Reporting or whistle-blowing. Location and time data can identify a source.
Location is not the only clue in a photo. Street signs, house numbers, views from a window and reflections can give away a location even with all metadata removed. Our guide to removing location from photos covers the phone settings that stop GPS being recorded in the first place.
Who can see EXIF data?
Anyone who gets a copy of the original file can read its EXIF data. No special skills are needed: Windows, macOS, iOS and Android all show photo details in their built-in apps, and free online viewers display everything, including a map pin for the GPS position.
Whether the original file reaches someone depends on how you share it:
| How you share | Does the recipient get the original file? |
|---|---|
| Email attachment | Usually yes |
| Cloud storage link (shared folder or file) | Usually yes, they can download the original |
| Direct file transfer (USB, AirDrop, Bluetooth) | Yes |
| Messaging apps and social networks | Varies by app, by setting and by whether you send it "as a file" or "as a photo" |
| An image host that re-encodes uploads | No, if the host removes metadata |
Because the behaviour of messaging apps and social networks varies and can change, we cover them separately in our comparison of which apps remove photo metadata. The safe assumption is that metadata is kept unless the service clearly says it removes it.
Also remember the service itself. Even when a platform hides EXIF data from other users, it may still read it when you upload. If you do not want a company to have your location, remove it before you upload.
How do I view EXIF data on my phone or PC?
Windows, macOS, iOS and Android all show EXIF data in their built-in apps. On iPhone, open the photo in Photos and swipe up or tap Info. In Google Photos on Android, swipe up or tap More. On Windows, open Properties and the Details tab. On a Mac, use the Info button in Preview.
Checking a photo takes a few seconds. These are the built-in methods.
iPhone and iPad
- Open the Photos app and tap the photo.
- Swipe up or tap the Info button.
- You see the device, lens and camera settings, and a small map if the photo has a location.
Apple documents these steps in its guide to seeing photo and video information on iPhone.
Android (Google Photos)
- Open the photo in Google Photos.
- Tap More (the three dots) or swipe up to see details.
- The details panel shows the date, device, file details and location, if there is one.
Other Android gallery apps have a similar Details or Info option.
Windows
- Right-click the photo in File Explorer and choose Properties.
- Open the Details tab.
- Scroll through the Camera, Advanced photo and GPS sections.
Mac
- Open the photo in Preview.
- Click the Info button in the toolbar. The More Info section shows the image details in different formats, according to Apple's guide to viewing image information in Preview.
- To check the location, choose Tools > Show Location Info. Apple's Preview location guide notes that if this option is greyed out, the image contains no location information.
How do I remove EXIF data before sharing a photo?
You have three practical options: stop your phone sharing the location, remove or hide metadata with the built-in tools on a computer, or run the photo through a tool that strips everything at once, such as our free EXIF remover or a PictureToLink upload. Pick the one that matches how you are sharing.
1. Stop the location being shared from your phone
On iPhone, Apple's guide describes two built-in controls:
- When sharing: select photos, tap the Share button, tap Options, then turn off Location. "Location Not Included" appears at the top of the share sheet.
- For a single photo: open it, tap More, then Adjust Info > Adjust Location > No Location.
To stop recording locations altogether, go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services > Camera and choose Never.
On Android, Google Photos lets you remove locations that were estimated or added by hand, but its help page on photo locations says that if the location was added by your camera, you can't edit or remove it in Google Photos. In that case, turn off location tagging in your camera app's settings for future photos, and use a metadata remover for photos you have already taken.
2. Remove metadata on a computer
On Windows, the Details tab in a photo's Properties window has a link called Remove Properties and Personal Information. Choose Create a copy with all possible properties removed to keep your original intact, then share the copy. Check the copy's Details tab afterwards to confirm the GPS section is empty.
On a Mac, the Photos app can hide location: select photos and choose Image > Location > Hide Location, as described in Apple's personal safety guide. Check the exported file before you share it.
3. Use a tool that strips everything
The simplest option is to run the photo through a tool that removes all metadata at once:
- To keep the file: use our free EXIF remover, then share the cleaned copy however you like.
- To share by link: upload the photo to PictureToLink. Every upload is re-encoded, and all embedded metadata, including GPS coordinates, camera model and the date taken, is discarded before the image is stored. You get a link to send instead of the file.
Keep in mind what metadata removal cannot do. It cannot hide what is visible in the picture, and anyone with the link to an uploaded image can view it and pass it on. For the full set of precautions, read our checklist on sharing photos privately.
Next step
Open the last photo you shared and check its info panel. If you see a map or coordinates, turn off location sharing on your phone as shown above, and use the EXIF remover on any photo you are about to post publicly.