Image Metadata Remover (IMR)

A lean and efficient CLI tool written in Go that removes sensitive metadata from images while preserving image quality.

Features

• 🔒 Remove sensitive metadata (GPS, camera info, personal data)
• 🖼️ Support for multiple formats: JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC/HEIF
• ⚡ Fast and efficient processing
• 📦 Zero-dependency binary
• 🔧 Simple CLI interface

Installation

From Source

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/image-metadata-remover.git
cd image-metadata-remover
go build -o imr ./cmd/imr

Binary

Download the latest release from the releases page.

Usage

Basic Usage

# Process a single image
imr photo.jpg

# Preview metadata without removing (dry-run)
imr --dry-run photo.jpg

# Process directory recursively
imr -r photos/

# Process multiple files and directories
imr photo1.jpg photo2.png images/

# Use custom suffix
imr -suffix _clean vacation/*.jpg

# Verbose recursive processing
imr -r -verbose photos/

Options

--dry-run
    Preview metadata without removing (no output file created)
    Shows grouped and alphabetically sorted output:
      - "Metadata to be removed" (sensitive tags)
      - "Metadata to be preserved" (technical tags)
    Includes summary with tag counts

-r, --recursive
    Process directories recursively
    
-suffix string
    Suffix to append to output filenames (default "_imr")
    
-verbose
    Enable verbose output
    
-version, -v
    Show version information
    
-help, -h
    Show help message

Output

Output files are saved with the specified suffix (default: _imr):

• photo.jpg → photo_imr.jpg
• image.png → image_imr.png

Metadata Handling

IMR uses selective preservation - it removes only sensitive metadata while keeping technical image information intact.

Removed (Sensitive Data)

• GPS data: All location information (latitude, longitude, altitude, timestamps)
• Camera/Lens info: Make, model, serial numbers
• Software: Editing software and version information
• Creator info: Artist, copyright, comments, descriptions
• Timestamps: Creation, modification, digitization dates
• Serial numbers: Body and lens serial numbers

Preserved (Technical Data)

• Image properties: Dimensions, resolution, color space, orientation
• Exposure settings: ISO, aperture, shutter speed, focal length
• Technical tags: Flash, metering mode, white balance, exposure mode
• Quality settings: Compression, sharpness, saturation, contrast
• Format metadata: EXIF version, component configuration

Example: A typical JPEG with 59 EXIF tags will have 18 sensitive tags removed and 41 technical tags preserved.

How It Works

1. Parse EXIF structure: Read all existing EXIF tags from the image
2. Filter by category: Identify which tags are sensitive (40+ tag IDs)
3. Remove GPS IFD: Completely drop the GPS sub-directory
4. Rebuild EXIF: Create new EXIF block with only non-sensitive tags
5. Write output: Save image with filtered EXIF metadata

The tool uses github.com/dsoprea/go-exif/v3 for precise EXIF manipulation without re-encoding the image data, preserving maximum quality.

Supported Formats

Currently Supported:

• ✅ JPEG (.jpg, .jpeg) - Selective EXIF preservation (removes sensitive tags, keeps technical ones)

Currently Supported Formats:

• ✅ JPEG/JPG (.jpg, .jpeg) - All case variations supported
  • Selective EXIF preservation
  • Removes: GPS, device info, lens info, serial numbers, timestamps, creator info
  • Preserves: Exposure settings, resolution, orientation, color space, etc.
• ✅ PNG (.png) - All case variations supported
  • Selective chunk preservation
  • Removes: tEXt/zTXt/iTXt chunks with sensitive keys (Author, Copyright, Comment, Software, Title, etc.)
  • Removes: eXIf chunks with sensitive EXIF data (GPS, device info, timestamps)
  • Removes: tIME chunks (modification timestamps)
  • Preserves: Technical chunks (IHDR, IDAT, PLTE, gAMA, cHRM, sRGB, iCCP, pHYs, etc.)
• ✅ WebP (.webp) - All case variations supported
  • RIFF container-based handling
  • Removes: EXIF chunks with sensitive data (GPS, device info, timestamps)
  • Removes: XMP chunks with author/location info
  • Preserves: VP8/VP8L/VP8X image data, ICCP color profiles, ALPH alpha channels, ANIM/ANMF animation
• ✅ HEIC/HEIF (.heic, .heif) - All case variations supported
  • Uses github.com/maw629/heic-meta/pkg/heicmeta
  • Removes: sensitive EXIF and XMP metadata
  • Preserves: HEIC image data (mdat) and non-sensitive container structure

Planned Support (Phase 3):

• 🔜 TIFF (.tiff, .tif) - EXIF handling (similar to JPEG)
• 🔜 GIF (.gif) - Comment and extension block handling

Development Status

Current Phase: Phase 3 - PNG, WebP & HEIC/HEIF Support Complete ✓

Completed Features:

• ✅ JPEG metadata removal with selective preservation (Phase 1 & 2 Enhancement)
• ✅ PNG metadata removal with selective preservation (Phase 3)
• ✅ WebP metadata removal with RIFF container handling (Phase 3)
• ✅ Dry-run mode with grouped, alphabetically sorted metadata preview (Phase 1)
• ✅ Multiple file processing (Phase 1)
• ✅ Custom output suffix (Phase 1)
• ✅ Recursive directory processing (Phase 2)
• ✅ Smart path handling - mix files and directories (Phase 2)
• ✅ Selective EXIF preservation - keeps technical tags, removes sensitive ones (Phase 2 Enhancement)
• ✅ Tag classification fixes - MakerNote, GPSInfoIFDPointer, SubSec timestamps, thumbnails (Phase 2 Enhancement)
• ✅ Alphabetically sorted tag display in dry-run mode (Phase 2 Enhancement)
• ✅ PNG chunk-based metadata handling (Phase 3)
• ✅ Text chunk filtering with pattern matching (Phase 3)
• ✅ PNG EXIF metadata filtering (Phase 3)
• ✅ WebP RIFF container parsing and reconstruction (Phase 3)
• ✅ WebP EXIF and XMP metadata removal (Phase 3)
• ✅ HEIC/HEIF metadata removal via heic-meta integration (Phase 3)

Roadmap:

• Phase 0: Project scaffolding and dummy CLI ✅
• Phase 1: JPEG support with EXIF removal and dry-run mode ✅
• Phase 2: Recursive directory processing ✅
• Phase 2 Enhancement: Selective EXIF preservation ✅
  • Selective preservation implementation ✅
  • MakerNote and GPSInfoIFDPointer fixes ✅
  • SubSec timestamp fixes ✅
  • Thumbnail tag corruption fixes ✅
  • Alphabetical sorting ✅
• Phase 3: Extended format support 🔄
  • PNG support ✅
  • WebP support ✅
  • HEIC/HEIF support ✅
  • TIFF support (future)
  • GIF support (future)
• Phase 4: Progress indicators and configuration file support
• Phase 5: Comprehensive testing, benchmarks, and documentation

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details

Privacy & Security

This tool is designed to help protect your privacy by removing potentially sensitive metadata from your images. Always verify the output before sharing images publicly.