Nikon has announced its partnership with Paris-based news agency, Agence France Press (AFP) to provide practical image authenticity verification as the use of AI-generated imagery becomes more widespread. The new in-camera image provenance function developed for Nikon cameras aims to protect photojournalists in particular from not just fake images but also unauthorised use of imagery.

Nikon’s in-camera watermarking technology adds an extra layer of security on top of the existing metadata authentication that uses the C2PA* framework. With this new feature that creates an embedded watermark, Nikon says it ensures that correlation to the original image can be traced back even if the C2PA-compliant metadata is accidentally deleted.

(*C2PA: Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity, addresses the prevalence of misleading information online through the development of technical standards for certifying the source and history (or provenance) of media content.’)

From Nikon:

London, United Kingdom, 9th January 2024: Nikon is pleased to announce the collaboration with Paris-based news agency the Agence France-Press (AFP). This partnership involves AFP photographers verifying a new image provenance function that Nikon has recently developed for its cameras, especially for users within the field of journalism.

The new operation has been designed to protect individuals and enterprises in the imaging industry from any unfavourable results caused by falsification and/or the unauthorised use of images, enabling photographers’ creative and professional activities to be conducted with more peace of mind.

Ensuring the authenticity of images, especially in the field of journalism, is an important challenge that Nikon and AFP share the same aim to overcome, with the introduction of the new function. In order to implement this new feature in the cameras, Nikon will begin the practical verification of its performance within AFP’s workflow. This involves enabling the attachment of information such as sources and origins from the moment of image capture. The objective here is to improve the reliability of news photos and streamline the fact-checking process.

Nikon has newly incorporated electronic watermarking technology into the new function and is simultaneously developing an innovative feature that generates images with embedded watermark data, directly within the camera system. This means that even if the metadata that is compliant with the specifications of the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) is accidentally deleted, the correlation with the original image can be determined. This enables the construction of a more robust authenticity system, thereby contributing to higher-quality image verification.

An AFP spokesperson comments: “We are proud to unite our strengths with Nikon to address the critical matter of image provenance. Together, we aim to elevate the standards of professional journalism and foster a renewed sense of trust within the public sphere. Through this partnership, and with the new function, we are poised to develop the way images are sourced, verified, and shared, ensuring an unwavering commitment to authenticity and transparency. Within this collaboration, we are working towards a future where the truth matters, empowering individuals and institutions with accurate and reliable information.”

Nikon will continue to incorporate new elements of the evolving C2PA specifications and conduct development and verification. This function has been planned to be included in upcoming products and the timing of its incorporation will be announced separately, once determined.

Nikon continuously strives to meet users’ needs, providing a number of innovative, useful functions that set the standard for the future. To find out more visit www.europe-nikon.com

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