Frequently Asked Questions

Scrubb removes metadata by rewriting the container around the image and preserving its encoded picture data. For supported lossless formats such as JPEG and HEIC, the image is not re-compressed and keeps its format. In lossless mode, image decoding is used for verification, not to create a lower-quality replacement.

Scrubb checks the cleaned data before exporting it. It scans for the fields selected for removal. Image checks test decoding and dimensions; video checks inspect the container structure. Lossless image paths also compare decoded pixels. A failed check stops that export. These checks happen before saving, rather than by reading back the final saved copy.

No, not when you choose a copy destination. “Replace Original” is a separate choice behind its own confirmation. Scrubb checks the cleaned data before exporting it and uses a temporary file when replacing a file on disk.

Because the risk isn't worth it. CR2, CR3, NEF, ARW, DNG and other camera negatives use proprietary internal layouts, and a bad edit destroys an image you cannot recreate. Scrubb skips these files and leaves the negative untouched. To clean a rendered copy, first export a JPEG or HEIC with your photo editor, then import that copy into Scrubb.

Depending on the file: GPS coordinates, sometimes accurate to a few metres, which can be enough to identify a home or workplace. The date and time to the second. Your camera or phone's make, model and sometimes its serial number, which links every photo you have ever posted to the same device. The software you edited with. And sometimes an embedded thumbnail of the original shot, which can survive cropping and show what you cropped out.

Your files are processed on your device, with no upload or account required. Map and place-name lookups use Apple services, and purchases and restoring purchases use the App Store. Metadata removal runs locally.

The inspector — seeing everything hidden in a photo — is free forever. The first five exports are free and full-strength; Scrubb will never strip only part of your metadata to push you towards paying. After that, one payment of $7.99 unlocks unlimited exports across Mac, iPhone and iPad. It is not a subscription and it will not become one.

JPEG, PNG, HEIC/HEIF, WebP, GIF and QuickTime video (.mov, .mp4) are cleaned losslessly. TIFF is supported. Camera RAW is deliberately refused, as above. iPhone photos with depth maps or HDR gain maps are handled specially so the extra embedded images survive and the photo still renders correctly.

Yes. Scrubb removes metadata from QuickTime video — .mov and .mp4 — the same way it handles photos: by rewriting the container and leaving the encoded media untouched, so the video is not re-encoded and loses no quality. That includes the GPS coordinates iPhones write into video files, which most people do not realise are there at all.

Because you have to upload the photo to a stranger's server to use one. The file you are trying to strip identifying data out of is precisely the file you should not be handing to an unknown third party, and once it has been uploaded you have no way to know what was kept, logged, or cached. Scrubb runs entirely on your device — there is no server to upload to, and no account. It is also why the inspector is free: you can confirm exactly what is in your photos without giving anyone anything.

No. Scrubb removes metadata stored inside the file. It does not blur faces, cover visible addresses or change the scene in the picture. Check what is visible in the image as well as its metadata before sharing.