EXIF, IPTC, and XMP are three ways photo files store information about themselves. EXIF is written by the camera or phone and records how the photo was taken: date, camera model, settings, and often GPS location. IPTC is the industry standard for describing and crediting a photo: caption, keywords, creator, and copyright. XMP is Adobe’s extensible format that can hold both kinds of information, often in the same file or in a sidecar next to a RAW file. MetaForge, an offline Windows app, reads and cleans all three: its Privacy Mode strips GPS, altitude, and serial numbers, including the XMP location data its Store listing says the built-in Windows tool leaves behind.
If you have ever removed “location” from a photo and still found a city name in it, this is why.
Strip GPS and serial numbers from EXIF, IPTC, and XMP in one offline pass.
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What is EXIF?
EXIF (Exchangeable image file format) is the standard cameras and phones use to record technical information inside the image file. It is maintained by the Camera and Imaging Products Association (CIPA) with JEITA. CIPA’s standards page lists the current edition as CIPA DC-008, “Exchangeable image file format for digital still cameras: Exif Version 3.1,” published 30 January 2026.
Typical EXIF fields:
- Date and time the photo was taken.
- Camera make and model, lens, and often the body serial number.
- Exposure: shutter speed, aperture, ISO, focal length.
- Orientation.
- GPS latitude, longitude, and altitude, if location was on.
EXIF is written automatically. You did not type any of it, which is why people forget it is there.
What is IPTC?
IPTC Photo Metadata comes from the International Press Telecommunications Council. Its photo metadata page says it “sets the industry standard for administrative, descriptive, and copyright information about images” and calls it “the most widely used standard because of its universal acceptance among photographers, distributors, news organizations, archivists, and developers.”
Typical IPTC fields:
- Headline, caption, and description.
- Keywords.
- Creator, credit line, and copyright notice.
- Usage terms and contact details.
- Location shown: city, state or province, country, and sublocation.
IPTC is usually added by people or by software such as a photo manager, an agency workflow, or a template.
What is XMP?
XMP (Extensible Metadata Platform) is Adobe’s format for storing metadata. Adobe’s XMP documentation describes it as “a file labeling technology that lets you embed metadata into files themselves during the content creation process,” with open SDKs. XMP is also published as the international standard ISO 16684-1.
XMP matters for two reasons:
- It can carry EXIF and IPTC information. CIPA even publishes a companion standard, DC-010 “Exif metadata for XMP,” and IPTC fields are widely stored in XMP form.
- It can live outside the photo. For RAW files, editors often write an .xmp sidecar file next to the original instead of changing it.
How do EXIF, IPTC, and XMP compare?
| EXIF | IPTC | XMP | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who writes it | Camera or phone, automatically | People and software | Software, often editors |
| Main purpose | How the photo was taken | Describe, credit, license | Flexible container for any metadata |
| Typical fields | Date, camera, settings, GPS | Caption, keywords, creator, copyright, location names | Any of the above, plus edit history |
| Maintained by | CIPA and JEITA | IPTC | Adobe; ISO 16684-1 |
| Where it lives | Inside the image file | Inside the image file | Inside the file or in a sidecar |
| Privacy risk | GPS coordinates, serial numbers | Location names, contact details | Copies of location and personal fields |
Why does location show up after I removed GPS?
Because location can be stored in more than one place:
- EXIF GPS: exact coordinates and altitude.
- IPTC location fields: city, state, country, written as text.
- XMP: copies of either, kept by an editor or a sync tool.
- Sidecar files: an .xmp next to a RAW file that you share along with the photo.
A tool that only clears EXIF GPS leaves the rest. MetaForge’s Store listing makes this point about Windows’ own tool: it “removes the XMP location data the built-in Windows tool leaves behind.” Our guide on Windows’ Remove Properties and Personal Information looks at the built-in option in detail.
Preview every metadata change with Simulate Run before a single file is touched.
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How do I clean all three with MetaForge?
MetaForge is an offline EXIF editor, metadata remover, and photo organizer for Windows 10 and 11. From its Store listing:
- Privacy Mode strips GPS, altitude, device serial numbers, and owner fields.
- Batch copyright and metadata: apply author and copyright (EXIF and IPTC) tags to thousands of files at once.
- RAW-safe handling: non-destructive XMP sidecar creation and merging for .CR2, .NEF, .ARW, .DNG, and more.
- Simulate Run: preview every move, rename, and metadata change before any file is touched.
- Organize files into folders by date, camera model, file type, or your own rules.
- Formats: JPEG, PNG, TIFF, WebP, HEIC, and common camera RAW formats.
- Offline: no cloud uploads, no telemetry, no account. Works in 20 languages.
A privacy workflow:
- Copy the photos you plan to share into a working folder.
- Open them in MetaForge and choose Privacy Mode.
- Run Simulate to see which fields will change.
- Run it for real and check a few results.
- Add your copyright in the same pass if you are publishing.
- Share only the cleaned copies, and leave sidecar files behind unless they are clean too.
How can I see a photo’s metadata on Windows?
The quickest look is built in: right-click the photo in File Explorer, choose Properties, and open the Details tab. You will see fields such as the date taken, camera model, and, if present, GPS coordinates. It is a useful first check, but it shows a curated selection of fields rather than everything stored in the file, so an empty-looking Details tab does not prove a photo is clean.
For a full view, open the file in a dedicated metadata tool. MetaForge shows what it will change in Simulate Run before it writes anything, which doubles as an inspection step when you are not sure what a batch of photos contains.
Which metadata should I keep?
Not all metadata is a risk. Copyright and credit in IPTC protect you when images travel, and capture dates help organize a library. A sensible split:
| Keep | Remove before public sharing |
|---|---|
| Copyright notice and creator | GPS coordinates and altitude |
| Capture date (for your own archive) | Camera and lens serial numbers |
| Keywords and captions you wrote | Owner name fields you did not mean to publish |
| Orientation | Location names, if the place is private |
Frequently asked questions
Does every photo have EXIF?
Most photos from cameras and phones do. Screenshots and images exported from some apps may have little or none.
Do social networks remove metadata?
Practices vary by service and change over time. Clean the files yourself before uploading so you do not depend on it.
Is XMP only for Adobe software?
No. XMP is an open format published as ISO 16684-1, and many tools read and write it.
Does MetaForge upload my photos?
No. It runs entirely on your PC with no cloud uploads.
Try MetaForge
Get MetaForge from the Microsoft Store, read the MetaForge product page, or compare it with the command line in MetaForge vs ExifTool.
Clean location and device data from every metadata format, offline.
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Microsoft and Windows are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. Adobe and XMP are trademarks of Adobe. IPTC is a trademark of the International Press Telecommunications Council. Other product names are trademarks of their owners. MetaForge is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.
Last updated 17 October 2026. Published by Automata Labs, a software company in Canada.