YouTube is rolling out new labels to indicate whether videos are sourced from a genuine camera with unaltered audio and visuals. The “captured with a camera” label was showcased by Trupic, a digital content authentication service, which recently uploaded a video that activated this label in the description panel.
Trupic claims to have produced the first authentic video on YouTube using C2PA Content Credentials. This initiative aligns with efforts from companies like Leica, which began integrating content credentials into their devices last year, though it remains unclear if these will activate YouTube’s new labels.
YouTube is leveraging the C2PA standard to authenticate videos, meaning the feature will be available only for devices that support the necessary metadata. According to YouTube’s help page, the label indicates that creators have utilized specific technology to verify the origin of their video, ensuring that both audio and visuals remain unchanged.
For the label to be visible, creators must use tools compatible with C2PA version 2.1 or higher, which may limit its availability in the short term. In a blog post last month, Laurie Richardson, Google’s vice president of trust and safety, mentioned the company’s exploration of ways to communicate C2PA information to viewers, especially concerning camera-captured content.
In response to a query from The Verge, Google spokesperson Elena Hernandez reiterated Richardson’s blog points. While videos do not need to be completely unedited to qualify for the label, they must meet specific criteria, including maintaining a clear chain of provenance, which means avoiding edits that obscure the video’s original source. Additionally, creators must ensure that significant alterations to the video’s core content, including audio and visuals, are avoided, and that all edits adhere to C2PA standards (version 2.1 or higher).
Earlier this year, Google also launched an “altered or synthetic content” label, which relies on users to self-identify uploads containing AI-generated material.
