ExifTool remove all metadata (2025): wipe EXIF/XMP/IPTC

Use ExifTool to remove all metadata safely with -all=. Keep pixels and streams intact while clearing GPS, camera serials, XMP history, and more. Includes recursive cleanup, selective fields, verification, and CI automation.

ImagesVideoPDF2025

🔒 Remove image metadata in your browser — MetaRemover.com ExifTool docs →

Privacy Risk

GPS, device, history

Leak potentialHigh

Visual Impact

Pixels unchanged

Quality lossNone

Automation

CLI & CI

Batch readinessExcellent

Audit existing metadata

Always inspect what you’re about to delete. Some pipelines rely on non-sensitive tags like orientation or color profile.

# Human-readable with groups and duplicate tags visible
exiftool -G -a -s "input.jpg"

# JSON for scripts
exiftool -G -j "input.jpg"

Need a quick, no-install way to scrub metadata from a single image? Try a privacy-first, browser-only cleaner — MetaRemover.com. Processes locally; no uploads.

Images: remove all metadata

Wipe EXIF/XMP/IPTC

Lossless metadata removal

exiftool -all= -overwrite_original "photo.jpg"

# Preserve ICC color profile if needed:
exiftool -all= -tagsFromFile @ -icc_profile -overwrite_original "photo.jpg"

Tip

Keeping ICC helps avoid color shifts on some displays/printers.

Video: remove all metadata

MP4/MOV/MKV

Container & stream tags

# ExifTool pass (clears many container tags)
exiftool -all= -overwrite_original "clip.mp4"

# Optional: pair with ffmpeg for chapters/attached pictures (run separately):
# ffmpeg -i clip.mp4 -map 0 -c copy -map_metadata -1 -map_chapters -1 -movflags +faststart out_clean.mp4

Thumbnails and attached pictures can carry EXIF. Replace or remove them when packaging videos.

PDF: remove metadata with ExifTool

# Wipe Info and XMP packets
exiftool -all= -overwrite_original "doc.pdf"

# Verify common fields are gone
exiftool -G -a -s "doc.pdf" | egrep -i "Title|Author|Subject|Keywords|Producer|Creator|CreateDate|ModifyDate|XMP" || echo "Clean"

Digital signatures

Any modification (including metadata changes) can invalidate PDF signatures. Plan the cleaning step before signing.

Office files (DOCX, PPTX, XLSX)

ExifTool can edit some properties in OOXML files, but Office apps may re-insert producer/creator. Use built-in Inspect Document features too.

# Attempt to clear common properties in OOXML
exiftool -title= -author= -subject= -keywords= -creator= -producer= -overwrite_original "report.docx"

For robust enterprise workflows, export PDFs from Office then clean the PDF as a final artifact.

Recursive cleanup (folders)

# Clean an entire tree (images & videos), in-place
exiftool -all= -overwrite_original -r /path/to/folder

# Limit to specific types
exiftool -ext jpg -ext jpeg -ext png -ext webp -overwrite_original -r /path/to/folder

# Dry run (see what would change)
exiftool -all= -r -n -P -overwrite_original_in_place -v2 /path/to/folder  # remove -overwrite_original* to avoid changes

Cleaning a few images for a one-off share? Use a privacy-first, browser-only cleaner — MetaRemover.com.

Selective fields (GPS, dates, author)

# Remove GPS only
exiftool -GPS*= -overwrite_original "photo.jpg"

# Remove dates (creation/modify)
exiftool -CreateDate= -ModifyDate= -DateTimeOriginal= -overwrite_original "photo.jpg"

# Remove camera & lens IDs
exiftool -Make= -Model= -SerialNumber= -LensID= -LensSerialNumber= -overwrite_original "photo.jpg"

# Keep ICC profile while wiping others
exiftool -all= -tagsFromFile @ -icc_profile -overwrite_original "photo.jpg"

Verify & compare

# Compare before vs after as JSON
exiftool -G -j "before.jpg" > before.json
exiftool -G -j "after.jpg"  > after.json
# Use diff tools to ensure sensitive fields are gone

# Quick spot-check
exiftool -G -a -s "after.jpg"

CI/Automation (GitHub Actions)

name: exiftool-wipe
on:
  push:
    paths: ["assets/**/*.{jpg,jpeg,png,webp,heic,mp4,mov}"]
jobs:
  clean:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - name: Install exiftool
        run: sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y exiftool
      - name: Wipe metadata
        run: |
          exiftool -all= -overwrite_original -r assets/
      - name: Verify changed files
        run: |
          exiftool -G -a -s $(git ls-files assets/) | tee exif_audit.txt

FAQ

Ship clean media — protect privacy

Use ExifTool for batch cleanup and CI. For quick, one-off image scrubs, try a browser-only cleaner before sharing.

Remove Metadata Now → MetaRemover.com