Remove Content Credentials from Photoshop Files

Photoshop exports can carry C2PA Content Credentials for two reasons: you switched them on for the document, or a generative AI tool like Generative Fill touched the image and Adobe attached them automatically. Meta and TikTok both read C2PA, so a photo that is almost entirely camera work can still be labeled. ScrubPhoto removes that metadata from the exported JPG or PNG in your browser and leaves every pixel as it was.

Check a file for Instagram, TikTok and Facebook label triggers or scrub it now. Both run in your browser and nothing is uploaded.

Two ways Content Credentials get into a Photoshop file

The first way is opt-in. Adobe's Photoshop help, updated in August 2026, has you enable them per document from Window > Content Credentials (Beta), or for new documents under Photoshop > Settings > History & Content Credentials. Adobe's export page says the Export As dialog then offers Publish to Content Credentials cloud, Attach to file, or None, and that only JPG and PNG support them for now.

The second way is automatic. Adobe's labeling FAQ says Adobe apps attach C2PA metadata in the background any time a qualifying generative AI tool makes or changes content. It may record the application, the AI model, whether the content was wholly generated or only modified, the date and time, and a unique content identifier. Adobe adds that users cannot switch it off when the content qualifies.

Why a quick Photoshop fix can get a real photo labeled

Generative Fill is the obvious one. Adobe's Generative Fill page has you select an area, pick a model in the Contextual Task Bar and generate. Adobe says you can leave the prompt blank and Photoshop fills the selection from the surrounding pixels, so a plain cleanup still runs through a generative model.

The less obvious case is the Remove tool. Adobe's Remove tool page lists a Mode option with three settings, and one of them reads Auto (May use generative AI). In Auto, Photoshop picks the method itself, so a two-second fix can use generative AI without you choosing it. Setting it to Generative AI is off avoids that, by Adobe's description.

Adobe's FAQ does not name every qualifying tool, so let the checker tell you whether your file holds C2PA and which app signed it.

Which platforms react to Photoshop Content Credentials

Meta checks uploads to Instagram, Facebook and Threads for C2PA and IPTC AI indicators, and also labels a post when the uploader says AI was used. Since September 2024, the label for AI-edited images sits in the post's menu rather than on the photo. Instagram's name for it has changed over time: Made with AI at launch, then AI info, and many people now see AI content. TikTok announced in May 2024 that files carrying Content Credentials get its AI label automatically. Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube and X set their own rules, so read their help pages before you post there.

How to remove Content Credentials from a Photoshop export

Export a JPG or PNG with File > Export > Export As. Choosing None there keeps out the opt-in kind, though not the automatic kind.
Drop the file into the C2PA remover and read what it found.
Tap Scrub and save the clean copy with Download, or with Share on a phone.

ScrubPhoto removes the C2PA block (the APP11 segment in a JPG, the caBX chunk in a PNG), along with XMP, the Photoshop IPTC block, EXIF and JPEG comments. It keeps the ICC profile, so colors match, and the pixels are byte-for-byte identical to Photoshop's export. Nothing is uploaded.

What Photoshop leaves that no metadata tool can remove

Credentials published to Adobe's cloud stay there, and Adobe says that copy can restore them if they are stripped from your file. The Generative Fill model picker also lists partner models, including Google's Gemini, and Adobe does not say whether those outputs carry an invisible watermark like SynthID, which no metadata tool could remove (why SynthID stays). Platforms can label for reasons outside the file too, and Meta expects people to disclose photorealistic video and realistic audio they created or altered digitally.

Questions about Photoshop Content Credentials

How do I remove Content Credentials in Photoshop itself?

For the opt-in kind, choose None in the Content Credentials section of Export As, or turn them off for the document by right-clicking or Option-clicking its tab. The automatic kind is different: Adobe's FAQ says it stays on for qualifying generative edits, so the exported copy is where you clean it.

Does Photoshop add a visible AI watermark?

No. Adobe's labeling FAQ says Adobe does not automatically add visible AI labels to content, though it points to tools for adding one yourself.

Which Photoshop file types can ScrubPhoto clean?

ScrubPhoto cleans JPEG, PNG and WebP losslessly. That covers JPG and PNG, the two formats Adobe says carry Content Credentials at export.

Can I fix a Photoshop image that already has a label on Instagram?

Scrubbing changes the file on your device, not a live post. Fixing one means uploading a clean copy, and this guide covers the trade-offs.

Sources

Official pages this page was checked against in October 2026: