The Creator
Ravi M., freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi, Georgia, covering conflict zones and environmental stories.
The Situation
Ravi captured exclusive photographs of an illegal logging operation in a protected forest area. He submitted the images to an international news agency, which published them with credit. Within hours, a local media outlet published the same images without credit, claiming their own photographer had taken identical shots. The news agency suspended Ravi’s payment pending resolution.
The Problem
The local outlet had access to the same geographic area and could plausibly claim independent capture. EXIF data alone was insufficient because the outlet argued EXIF can be cloned or manipulated. Ravi needed proof that his specific image files — byte-for-byte — existed before the competing claim.
The AuthorHash Solution
Ravi timestamps his photographs in the field immediately after capture, using AuthorHash on his mobile device. The privacy-first design is essential for conflict zone work — no image content is ever transmitted, protecting both the photographer and any individuals visible in the photos. The AuthorHash certificate established that Ravi’s exact image files existed hours before the competing outlet’s publication.
The Outcome
The news agency’s legal team verified the AuthorHash certificates, confirmed Ravi’s priority, and resumed payment. The local outlet was sent a DMCA takedown. Ravi now timestamps every image set before transmission as standard workflow — it adds under 2 minutes per assignment.
"In the field, you can’t always control what happens to your images after you send them. But you can prove you had them first. I timestamp before I transmit, every single time.
Key Takeaway
Timestamp before you transmit. In photojournalism, seconds matter — and so does proving who captured first.