EXIF Data Danger

[t-dub]

Privacy today is a fleeting thing but high speed information exchange has become ubiquitous in our world so how can we protect ourselves? One way is to make sure your EXIF data is stripped before uploading pictures to the internet. When you take a picture with any GPS enabled device it will by default encode your time and GPS coordinates, along with a bunch of other stuff, into your pic. A while ago I posted my first pic on FC. An hour later I woke up in bed thinking "Oh Crap" Sure enough, I go to FC, copy the pic location, go to this free online analyzer, put in my pic, and BAM all of a sudden I am looking at my house on Google Earth needless to say, I was stunned.

Moral of the story: Turn the GPS on your smartphone off. Use an EXIF stripper program to prep photos for upload. Stay smart and stay safe.

EXIF Viewer web site: http://regex.info/exif.cgi

EXIF Stripper (free): http://www.steelbytes.com/?mid=30

 

[CentiZen]

Metadata of all types is dangerous. Not only does this happen with images these sorts of fingerprints are included in documents, files and all sorts of other program files. In my opinion hex deconstruction is one of the more useful skills for a person interested in maintaining their security because most of this information is included in the header in hex.

 

[Vapinghole]

Thanks, t-dub!!

Folks - I checked it out as well, and my pics had all that shit. I got an efix remover app and will run my photos through every time now.

t-dub, you're a good dude!

 

[Papa Woody]

Thank you T-Dub for educating me!
I was not aware of this until reading your post.

This post should be required reading for everyone uploading photos and videos to FC.

 

[t-dub]

Thanks for the support guys! Please vote in the poll!

 

[VaporBoxed]

Wow. This is crazy! You took that with a Nikon! My canon t2i doesnt do this luckily.

 

[sessnet]

I always strip my photos - easy way (and I think it works) just copy-paste your photo into a new Document in PhotoShop.

Or you can take a screenshot of your photo, and paste that into something else.

Old school techniques!

 

[t-dub]

Thats an example photo from the website so people can have a quick glance at what it looks like to use it.

 

[turk]

....I believe the train has already left the station....much too late to worry about this now.....and it's unfortunate.

 

[t-dub]

True, the feds can turn your cell phone on any time they want and listen in, they need a warrant but they can write their own now without seeing a judge because of the Patriot Act . . . Many states are allowing police officers to search cell phones without warrants as well.

 

[turk]

....yeah I have over 13,000 images on flickr.....all showing exif data....there are much more insidious things to worry about...

 

[djonkoman]

if I'm correct, imgur automatically removes the exif data. checked a pic I uploaded using imgur and indeed it had very little data, and no location. then tried another pic straight from my comp, made with the same camera at the same day, it dod have a lot more data as the uploaded pic, but still no location.

I also often take pictures with my cellphone, haven't checked those for exif-data, but don't think it ataches the location since it's an older cellphone, and doesn't have a GPS-option.
don't realy get the smartphones, suddebly everyone around me has them, but my cellphone is smaller, it can do exactly what I want from a cellphone(calling+texting), and can even make decent pictures, and it can survive a drop from the stairs.
no use in spending a lot of money on features I barely use, I can see the advantage of quickly looking up a route trough google earth, but I don't think it's worth the money for that rare ocassion. I already barely use my cellphone as it is, I've even had to put new call-credit on my phone not because I was out but because it would expire soon if I didn't put new credit on it. 10 euro credit can easily last me 6 months.

actually I use my phone most often as a watch, when I was young I tried wearing a watch but the wristband annoyed me, also had a pocketwatch for a while, but a cellphone has turned out to be perfect, alost always with me, the screen lights up so if it's dark I can still see the time, and no annoying wristband.

 

[SD_haze]

As a newly switched information systems major, I heartily support this thread

Glad to hear imgur deletes the personal data in the images.

 

[Nosferatu]

*Goes to grasscity and takes down grow room pics*

 

[t-dub]

I was thinking as well, if you posted a pic in say the "my stash" thread, someone could see not only that you had medicine but where, exactly, it was located. I mean if you are a potential burglar this is an amazing research opportunity . . .

 

[Quetzalcoatl]

if I'm correct, imgur automatically removes the exif data.

Yeah they do, they strip almost all of the info from the pictures during upload. The real danger about EXIF data comes from direct image uploading that doesn't strip metadata. I help moderate a relatively large community (just over 33,000 users currently on the site) and it has a focus on various drugs each with their own subforum (opiates, deliriants, psychedelics, etc.) We delete pictures every other day if not everyday because someone posted their huge grow room, their sweet stash/score or whatever and forgot to strip the EXIF.

Edit:

I was thinking as well, if you posted a pic in say the "my stash" thread, someone could see not only that you had medicine but where, exactly, it was located. I mean if you are a potential burglar this is an amazing research opportunity . . .

I totally didn't even see your post, I'm sorry haha. Yes, exactly what you said.

 

[t-dub]

We delete pictures every other day if not everyday because someone posted their huge grow room their sweet stash/score or whatever and forgot to strip the EXIF.

Thanks for that insight, really valuable for trying to gauge what level of problem might still exist out there "in the wild"