Morning Edition · Wednesday, September 16, 2026Published at 2:18 AM EDT · New York

Apple Builds Its Own Photo Authentication System Instead of Adopting the Industry Standard

Reference Image signs sensor data at capture on iPhone 18 Pro and stores an unalterable version next to the editable one, but it does not interoperate with the provenance standard Nikon, Sony, Leica and Google already use.

Apple has published the design of Apple Reference Image, an opt-in feature that lets an iPhone owner prove a photograph has not been altered since capture. The main camera on iPhone 18 Pro signs the original sensor data at the moment of exp…