Start here
The free tool below runs entirely in this browser — no account, nothing stored or transmitted. Redact anything you would not want kept before you type it.
Open the companion tool →Why the caption is not provenance
Sharing copies strips the context that would identify an image's origin. What remains is a picture plus a claim, and the claim is usually the part that is new.
A dated log with the earliest match and the official record lets someone else re-check your conclusion — an opinion cannot be audited, a provenance chain can.
The protocol
- Capture the post URL, uploader, timestamp, and caption before the post is edited or deleted.
- Run a reverse image search and record the earliest match you can find, with its date and location.
- Check official sources for the event — the agency, the local station, the weather service — and note what they show.
- Compare details against independent reporting, including anything that contradicts the image.
- Write the conclusion as 'supported / unsupported / unresolved', not as 'real' or 'fake'.
What the tool does
Build a news-image provenance log It runs locally in this browser and sends nothing.
Limit first: This tool organises provenance and context; it cannot authenticate media, identify a speaker, or prove that a clip is real or synthetic.
Open the companion tool →Cost and free path
Cost: Free: one complete run in this browser, no account. Optional $4 one-time unlock allows unlimited runs of this tool on this browser. The free path and safety guidance never require payment.
Free path, in order (no cost):
- CISA misinformation guidance for the verification method
- FEMA rumor control for disaster-specific claims
- The platform's own misinformation report route, which also slows the spread
What this cannot do: It cannot decide the outcome for you.
Sources checked 2026-10-03 · source bank reviewed against the live pages listed in metadata.
One human next step
If the image is being used to solicit donations or spread panic, report it to the platform and to the National Center for Disaster Fraud; otherwise share the provenance note instead of the image.
Research log and safety checks
AI-assist path: not used for a verdict. This builder organises the reader's own documents and names an independent source; it does not infer authenticity, eligibility, or legal rights. §6.9/§6.10/§6.11 disclosed in the batch report; §6.12 status line carried in metadata as `status_line`.
§0.5 protection result: category is deepfake-media-verification; crisis-adjacent: no; fear/urgency/scarcity toolkit used: no. The protective function is free and the paid feature is convenience only.