MetaWrite
See the metadata hidden in your files.
Forensic EXIF metadata suite for Mac. MetaWrite reads the tags inside photos, videos and PDFs, lets you edit or remove the ones you choose, and saves the result as a copy.
MetaWrite runs ExifTool by Phil Harvey on your Mac to read EXIF, XMP, IPTC, GPS, maker notes and more in photos, videos, PDFs and Office documents. A summary shows the capture date, GPS position, device, format and author.
MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, SHA-512 and SHA3-256 hashes of the file you open, computed on your Mac.
Stage edits and removals, then save a copy with them applied. In a PDF, an edited copy can keep earlier values that other tools can recover. Templates save a set of changes so you can reuse it.
Saves a copy of a photo with every tag ExifTool can remove taken out, keeping the image’s orientation. Office documents and WAV files can be read but not changed.
Apply a full scrub or a saved template to the supported files in a folder and its subfolders. Each result is saved as a new copy, and the originals are only read.
Save a PDF report of a file’s hashes, its metadata and the changes you made; the app calls it a certificate (“Export Certificate (PDF)”). A CSV log on your Mac records each file you open and each copy you export from the main window. Reports are not signed and do not prove when, where or by whom a file was made.
MetaWrite sends nothing to ProfWorkBench: not your files, their metadata, your hashes or any usage data, and it has no analytics. It contacts Apple’s App Store each time it starts, to check your purchase and load the prices. When a file has a GPS position, the map preview loads map images of that area from Apple, and clicking the position opens Apple Maps. The Zero Telemetry switch in Settings is off by default. Turning it on removes the map preview, so no map images load; it does not stop the App Store check. In MetaWrite 1.0, the file preview, drawn by macOS Quick Look, can load content from the internet when it shows a web-type file such as an HTML page, whether Zero Telemetry is on or off. Links to profworkbench.com open in your browser only when you click them. Reading, hashing, editing, saving, batch and reports run on your Mac.
MetaWrite is free to download. Opening a file is free, but seeing results, editing, saving copies, PDF reports and batch need MetaWrite Pro. The annual plan is an auto-renewing yearly subscription. Prices are US prices.
Educational, military, and first-responder discounts apply; see Academic & Service Discounts.