How can we help?
Short answers about the tools, your privacy, Pro and billing. Each one points you to the tool or guide that goes further.
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Getting started
What the site does and where to begin.
What does WhatsInMyFile do?
It shows the information your files carry without showing it: where a photo was taken, who wrote a document, comments, deleted text, AI labels and invisible characters. Then it gives you a clean copy without it. What hidden data is in a file? explains it from the start.
Where do I start?
Drop any file into the metadata checker. It works out what kind of file it is and lists what's inside in plain English. For copied text, use the invisible character checker. Every tool is on the tools page.
Which files can I check?
Pasted text; JPEG, PNG, WebP and HEIC photos; MP4 and MOV videos; MP3, M4A, WAV and other audio files; and Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF documents.
Is it free?
Checking any file is free, with no limit and no account. Cleaning photos and text is free too, and so is one Pro clean a day for any other single file (not in a batch). Pro cleans documents, PDFs, videos and audio as often as you like, and whole folders at once.
Do I need an account?
No. There are no accounts and no passwords. Pro uses a license key instead.
Privacy and safety
Where your files go (nowhere) and how to check.
Are my files uploaded?
No. Every check and every clean runs in your browser, on your own phone or computer. We never receive your files. The security page explains how it works.
How can I check that for myself?
Load a tool, turn off your Wi-Fi, then drop in a file: the check still works. Or open your browser's developer tools and watch the Network tab while you check a file. Both are explained step by step on the security page.
Does it work offline?
Checking works offline once the page has loaded, and so does cleaning photos, text and MP3, WAV or FLAC audio. The document, PDF, video and M4A cleaners download their code the first time you use them, so they need a connection once.
What do you store about me?
If you buy Pro: your email address, your plan and your license key, and for each browser that uses the key a random browser ID and a label like “Chrome on Mac”. If you join the monthly email: your email address. Nothing else, and never your files. The privacy policy lists every detail.
Checking and cleaning
What the results mean and what a clean copy changes.
Does cleaning change how my file looks?
No. Only the hidden data goes. Photos aren't recompressed, videos aren't re-encoded, and documents keep their visible content exactly as it was.
Is my original file changed?
No. The tools never touch the file you dropped in. You get a new, clean copy in your downloads, and the tool checks that copy again so you can see the hidden data is gone.
Can I keep some details, like my name or comments?
Yes. After a check, choose Choose what to remove and untick anything you want to keep. Pro members can save their usual choices on the Pro page.
Why does the cleaner keep AI labels and Content Credentials?
They tell people how an image or video was made, including whether AI made it. Your location and camera details are yours to remove; a label that tells people something is AI-generated isn't. SynthID explained covers the watermark inside the pixels, which no metadata tool can see.
Can it make AI text undetectable?
No. The text cleaners remove invisible characters and odd spaces. AI detectors look at writing patterns, and real text watermarks live in word choice, so cleaning changes neither. More in Does ChatGPT watermark text?
The tool says my file is too big. What can I do?
Each type of file has a size limit, and the message tells you what it is. For a large video, trim it first, or use the video metadata remover on a computer rather than a phone. For many files at once, the batch cleaner takes up to 4 GB.
My file won't open or can't be read.
It may be damaged, password-protected, or in an old format. Remove the password in Word, Excel or PowerPoint (File > Info > Protect) and try again. Old .doc, .xls and .ppt files can't be cleaned: save them as .docx, .xlsx or .pptx first.
The report found nothing. Is the file definitely clean?
It means we found nothing we know how to read. Social media, screenshots and many apps strip data before a file reaches you, so finding nothing is common. A clean result can't prove nothing was ever there. Which apps remove photo metadata? shows which apps strip what.
Pro and your license key
How the key works, more devices, and a lost key.
How does the license key work?
After you pay, you get a key that starts with WIMF. Pro unlocks in that browser straight away, and we email you the key. To use Pro somewhere else, enter the key on the Pro page there.
How do I use Pro on my phone or another computer?
On the Pro page, choose Add my phone and scan the QR code, or type your key into the Pro page on the other device.
How many browsers can I use?
Up to 5 at a time. Adding the key to a sixth turns Pro off in the one you used least recently. Your Pro page lists the browsers in use.
I lost my key.
Open Lost your key? on the Pro page and enter the email address you paid with. We'll send every working key bought with it.
I cleared my browser and Pro is gone.
Pro is saved in your browser, so clearing site data removes it. Enter your key on the Pro page again, or have it emailed with Lost your key?
Can I buy Pro for my team?
Yes. Email us for several keys on one invoice, with your company details.
Billing and refunds
Payments, receipts, canceling and refunds.
Who handles the payment?
Stripe, which sells Pro to you as the merchant of record and handles VAT and sales tax for your country. We never see your card details. Prices include VAT.
How do I cancel?
Open Billing and receipts on the Pro page, or use the link in your receipt email from Stripe. You won't be charged again, and your key keeps working until the end of the month or year you paid for.
Can I get a refund?
Yes. Email hello@whatsinmyfile.com within 14 days of paying and we'll refund you in full.
Where are my receipts, and how do I change my card?
Both are under Billing and receipts on the Pro page. Your receipt emails from Stripe have the same link.
What does the lifetime plan include?
Pro for as long as we offer it, including every Pro tool we add later, for one payment.
Copied work and reports
Comparing files, evidence reports and takedown notices.
How do I check if someone copied my photo or text?
Use compare two photos or compare two texts. Both show how closely the two match and what changed. Someone stole my photo walks through what to do next.
Can I download the result as a report?
Yes. After a comparison, choose Download report (PDF). It holds the result and a fingerprint of each file, and carries no site name, so it's simply your own record.
Is a comparison proof that someone copied me?
No. It shows how closely two files match. It doesn't prove who made the work first. Keep your original files, and check the result yourself before relying on it.
Are the DMCA generators legal advice?
No. They fill in a standard notice from your answers and explain how things usually work. For anything that could end in a dispute or in court, talk to a lawyer. Start with how to send a DMCA takedown notice.
Still stuck?
Email us and a person will reply. If it's about a file, say what kind of file it is and what the tool showed. Please don't send the file itself unless we ask.
Email us