Sony battles AI slop and disinformation with beta release of Camera Verify

With support for video content coming in the fall, Sony has released the first beta of  Camera Verify, a new feature of its Camera Authenticity Solution that enables external sharing of image authenticity information via a dedicated URL.

Rights issues prevent us from sharing a video of John Oliver's excellent takedown of AI Slop last week, but it was a good one. The Guardian does a good summary, and highlights how not only are sites like Pinterest currently drowning in the stuff, but that it seriously affects the news cycle. First responders in the North Carolina floods last year used social media to pinpoint where their efforts were most needed, and fake images of people rescuing pets etc confused the on-ground response. And we won't even get started on some of the misinformation floating about re the current Middle East conflict/s.

Any effort to counter the rising tide of awfulness is therefore most welcome, and Sony has announced the beta release of Camera Verify, a new feature of its Camera Authenticity Solution, that enables external sharing of image authenticity information via a dedicated URL. "This," states the company, "has been developed to help news organisations address the growing challenge of verifying the authenticity of digital images in the age of generative AI."

Sony’s Camera Authenticity Solution works by embedding C2PA  (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity) digital signatures and Sony’s proprietary 3D depth information directly into the image at the moment of capture. This allows the image's authenticity information to be verified on the Image Validation site.

With the newly added "Camera Verify" (beta), news organisations can now issue external sharing URLs for images with embedded digital signatures allowing third parties to view verification results through reliable URLs directly issued by the verification site. Using this, organisations can select specific authenticity items to share during the content publication and distribution process, which should help enable faster dissemination of credible, verifiable content.  

In addition, the Digital Signature License - which allows for embedding digital signatures directly into images captured with supported Sony cameras - is now available for purchase via the Creators’ Cloud website (pricing TBA), expanding accessibility to more professionals. Currently supported cameras for this digital signature license are Alpha 1 II (Ver.2.00 or later), Alpha 1 (Ver.3.00 or later), Alpha 9 III (Ver.3.00 or later), Alpha 7S III (Ver.4.00 or later), and Alpha 7 IV (Ver.5.00 or later).

Sony plans to expand support for video content after autumn 2025 as part of its ongoing commitment to promoting trusted digital media and work on the C2PA steering committee.