InVID

A toolkit that supports the verification of videos and images.

URL

https://weverify.eu/verification-plugin/

(v. 0.84.1 - Feb. 2025)

Description

The InVID Verification Plugin is a comprehensive toolkit designed to assist journalists in verifying content on social networks. It offers a suite of tools to analyze and verify videos and images, including contextual information retrieval, several engines (Google, Lens, Bing, TinEye, Yandex, Baidu, Karma Decay, DBKF), video fragmentation, and metadata extraction. The plugin supports multiple platforms, such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, making it a versatile tool for fact-checking and debunking tasks on social networks. (Some Twitter-related features may not work anymore due to the API policy change.)

If you're a journalist, fact-checker, or researcher, take a minute to apply and register to use the advanced tools. To do this, click "Advanced Tools" and then "Register". Register with your professional email address. Once you’re confirmed as registered, enter your email and then copy & paste the code emailed to you.

Features

Video

Video Analysis

Provides contextual information and metadata for YouTube and public Facebook videos, helping users understand the video's background and related comments.

Video Analysis

Results: Video Description

Results: Channel Description

Keyframes

Segments YouTube or Facebook videos into keyframes for detailed analysis and reverse image search, enhancing verification processes.

Keyframes

Here you can provide a source URL or upload a video and the tool will create keyframes for you for further analysis.

Results

If you click "Show Detailed View" the number of keyframes will increase.

Thumbnails

Extracts and performs a reverse search of thumbnails from YouTube videos to check for prior usage or manipulation.

Thumbnails

Provide a YouTube URL and place a checkmark for the reverse image search mechanism you want to use (you can select multiple). Note that if you check "Open Tabs," all result thumbnails will automatically be opened on all services, which might be a lot of tabs.

Results

This will result in a list of clickable thumbnails, which will lead you to the previously selected reverse image search service.

Google Fact Check example

In this case, no fact checks were found. But who knows, if you had selected another service previously, you might have found out more about our Python expert.

Video Rights

Retrieves and displays information on legal rights for YouTube and Twitter videos, helping users understand reuse conditions and copyright issues.

Video Rights

Provide a URL to the video which you want to analyze.

Results

The results section shows you Reuse Policy, License Summary, Contact information, as well as guide you how to give attribution to the video according to the available information.

Metadata

Extracts metadata from JPEG images and videos in MP4 or M4V formats, providing details such as creation date, camera settings, and location data.

Metadata Extraction Tool

You can upload an image/video or provide a URL

Results

Which will give you matadata included in the image. This may include the original data, as well as the brand and model of the camera, and can also include names and geographical locations.

Deepfake (Locked Feature)

Uses a machine learning classifier to determine the probability that a video contains AI-manipulated faces, such as face swapping or face reenactment. Access is restricted to registered users.

Deepfake Tab

Detection Results: clips

Result: no Deepfake

Result: Deepfake

This is a deepfake of German news anchor Christian Sievers, used in September 2023 for a Crypto Scam. As you can see, the deepfake video barely scores higher than an unedited video, illustrating that detection algorithms are never perfect. Results have to be manually validated through other sources. KI-Fake klaut ZDF-Moderator die Stimme—Das steckt dahinter. (2023, September 22). ZDFheute. https://www.zdf.de/nachrichten/panorama/kriminalitaet/ki-fake-sievers-heute-journal-100.html

Image

Image Analysis

Provides contextual information for images posted on Facebook, helping to verify their origin and context.

This function might not be available at this time due to changes in Facebook TOS.

Facebook Image Analysis

Copy the address of an image uploaded to facebook.

Error

At this point I was not able to find a photo that would not produce this error. The tutorial says I have to be logged in, which I am, but unfortunately I haven't gotten a working link yet, even when posted from my own profile.

Magnifier

Offers a magnifying lens and photo editor to examine images in detail, allowing for close inspection of specific areas.

Magnifier Tab

Results

The results tab allows you to use a magnifier by hovering over the image, edit the image, download the source, and do a reverse image search on DBFK, Google Lens, Baidu, Yandex, Bing, Tineye, and Google Factcheck.

Magnifier

Editing

The edit function allows you to perform some basic photo editing quickly. Most of the functions are tailored to focus on a particular part of the image or to obscure sensitive information; others are there to increase contrast, which in some cases is helpful to help identify hidden elements or alterations in the image, such as the boundaries of a patch added in post-processing. Applying a tint can help spot certain materials (like vegetation or blood), while blending can overlay various effects.

Metadata

Extracts metadata from JPEG images and videos in MP4 or M4V formats, providing important information for verification.

Metadata

Results

Forensic

Provides an enhanced toolkit to detect image forgeries, enabling detailed forensic analysis to identify manipulations.

Forensic Tab

"This enhanced forensic toolkit aims to help you detect alterations in manipulated images." This example is taken from a report of Bellingcat Researcher Annique Mossou. Mossou, A. (2023, May 2). Testing for Manipulation: A Case Study from Colombia. Bellingcat. https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2023/05/02/testing-for-manipulation-a-case-study-from-colombia/

Results: Filters

While a comprehensive review of the alteration detection algorithms is outside of the scope of this article, it's possible to recreate the clues that match the outcome of the investigation, which concluded that specific parts of the image had been altered. Here, using the GHOST filter.

Results: Enhancers

And here, corroberating the first result, using Error Level Analysis.

OCR (Optical Character Recognition)

Extracts text from images, making it easier to analyze and verify textual content within images.

OCR

Using the same source from above.

Results

We get what appears to be a (mostly) correctly identified set of words.

Reverse Image Seach and Translation

We further can do a reverse image search, as well as copy the text to clipboard, as well as translate it using google translate. "Paloma Valencia @PalomaValenciaL This is how the Pan-American Highway looks at the entrance to Totoró Cauca ELN"

CheckGIF (Locked Feature)

Compares an original image with a tampered one, including cropped images, and generates a GIF highlighting differences. Access is restricted to registered users.

This plugin will not be able to solve the question of the correct pronunciation of GIF.

CheckGIF

Here, we take images from an article surrounding the World’s First Rooftop Solar Panel. Postma, F. (2023, August 16). Untangling the Mystery of the World’s First Rooftop Solar Panel. Bellingcat. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/08/16/untangling-the-mystery-of-the-worlds-first-rooftop-solar-panel/

GIF creation

Result

In our case, no match has been found and no GIF was created, readers are welcome to suggest a more suitable example.

Synthetic Image (Locked Feature) - Determines the probability that an image is AI-generated, using machine learning to assess potential manipulations. Access is restricted to registered users.

Synthetic Image

We're making detection really easy. Midjourney prompt used was "photograph --ar 4:3".

First attempt: 88%

If Midjourney doesn't get a subject, it will make women

Second attempt: ??

"photograph of woman's face, pores, vellus hairs::1 freckles::-0.4 --s 700 --ar 3:4" Thanks to @InfoGuru from the Midjourney Discord. I'll see myself out.

Deepfake (Locked Feature) - Detects if an image has been manipulated through face swapping, providing insights into possible deepfake content. Access is restricted to registered users.

Deepfake Tab

Results

Nothing to see here. As soon as I've made a deepfake using materials I have the rights to, I will post it here.

Geolocalizer (Locked Feature) - Attempts to geolocate an image using an algorithm, helping to identify where a picture was taken. Access is restricted to registered users.

Geolocalizer Tab

I'm using an example from Logan William's excellent article on the OSM Search tool. Williams, L. (2023, May 8). Finding Geolocation Leads with Bellingcat’s OpenStreetMap Search Tool. Bellingcat. https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/how-tos/2023/05/08/finding-geolocation-leads-with-bellingcats-openstreetmap-search-tool/

First attempt

unfortunately I get an error for what should have been a street in Brussels.

Second attempt

Also, I had no luck with this shadow on a beach, which you can geolocate using only the sun! And math. And two geniuses: Reich, Galen & Friesen, Gabòr. (2024, August 22). Chasing Shadows: Geolocate Images with Bellingcat’s Shadow Finder Tool. Bellingcat. https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2024/08/22/shadow-geolocate-geolocation-locate-image-tool-open-source-bellingcat-measure/

Provenance (C2PA) - It reads an image or video's C2pa data.

Provenance Tab

Result

InVid is undergoing some renovations under the hood and I wasn't able to test this feature because it threw an error. I will update this page as soon as the error is resolved.

Audio

Loccus (Locked Feature)

This feature changed with the most recent update, switching from loccus.ai to hiya.ai as a service provider for this feature but due to an error I wasn't able to test it yet. I will update this as soon as the issue is resolved.

Detects AI-generated text-to-speech (voice cloning by AI), analyzing audio files to identify potential deep fake audio. Access is restricted to registered users.\

This feature was renewed as InVid changed from Loccus to “Hiya voice-clone detector”. An updated demo will follow shortly.

Loccus

I'm using this well-known deepfake of Monika Tódová, a well-known journalist. During the 2023 parliamentary election, this conversation, pure fabrication, became the first documented case of a deepfake playing a role in the pre-election battle. Karin Kőváry Sólymos. (2023). Slovakia: Deepfake audio of Denník N journalist offers worrying example of AI abuse. Ipi.Media. https://ipi.media/slovakia-deepfake-audio-of-dennik-n-journalist-offers-worrying-example-of-ai-abuse/

Results

While the average score indicates that most of the conversation comprises actual speech, it also shows a high likelihood of detection for some parts of the two-minute recording. More often than not, altering just a few words to change a conversation's meaning completely is sufficient. Mai, K. T., Bray, S., Davies, T., & Griffin, L. D. (2023). Warning: Humans cannot reliably detect speech deepfakes. PLOS ONE, 18(8), e0285333. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285333

Search

X Search

Performs advanced search queries on X (formerly Twitter), including precise time intervals, enhancing the ability to find relevant content.

X-Search Tab

Results

Fact Check Semantic Search (Locked Feature)

Uses semantic search algorithms to find fact-checked information across various sources, improving the accuracy of verification. Access is restricted to registered users.

Fact Check Semantic Search

Query

It's a valid question.

Results

While I didn't find my answer ("no, he did not"), the answers provided were all fact-checked. He did not join a group of comedians, was not headed to Moscow, and was not dead, but there is a photo of Elon Musk with a real robot. Even though fact-checked, it is always important to consider other sources and the possibility of things changing.

XNetwork

Provides a customized search engine (CSE) for cross-network queries, simultaneously allowing searches across multiple social media platforms (Twitter, Reddit, 4chan, YouTube, Facebook, 8kun, LinkedIn, VK, Instagram, and TikTok).

XNetwork

Results

Factchecks

Facilitates the discovery of fact-checked articles and reports from trusted fact-checking organizations, aiding in content verification.

Factchecks

Similar to the semanitc search above, providing similar results and give an additional means of arriving at fact-checked articles.

Results

Data Analysis

Twitter SNA (Locked Feature)

Performs social network analysis on Twitter, analyzing interactions, trends, and relationships to understand information spread and impact. Deprecated since July 1st, 2023, due to X/Twitter code changes. Is on registration, so might work again at some point and this article will reflect that. Access is restricted to registered users.

Twitter SNA

Results

Unfortunately, this feature doesn't work at the moment due to Twitter's policy changes.

CSV Analysis

Allows the import and analysis of social network data from CrowdTangle exports, using Social Network Analysis (SNA) to provide in-depth insights into social media activity and trends.

CrowdTangle is permanently gone. We hope that this feature will not disappear but be adapted to perform other ways of SNA instead.

CSV analysis Tab

Cost

• Free

Level of difficulty

Requirements

Chromium browsers and Firefox are fully supported; Safari is not.

Limitations

• External Services: Some tools within the plugin rely on external services that are not open-sourced, which may affect transparency and long-term accessibility.

• API Restrictions: Certain features, such as Twitter analysis, have been deprecated due to changes in platform APIs.

• Locked Features: Several advanced features are restricted to registered users, such as journalists and researchers, which may limit access for general users.

• Processing Time: The analysis of videos with a large number of comments or metadata can be slow, affecting efficiency.

• Browser Compatibility: The plugin is primarily designed for Chrome and Opera browsers, with limited support for other browsers like Firefox.

• Geolocation Accuracy: The Geolocalizer's accuracy depends on the availability and quality of metadata, which may not always be reliable.

• AI Detection Limitations: The accuracy of synthetic image and deepfake detection tools can vary, and false positives or negatives may occur.

Ethical Considerations

The InVID Verification Plugin helps researchers and journalists verify online media, but there are ethical implications when using it. First, the plugin relies on metadata extraction and reverse searches, which may access personal or private data embedded in media. This raises privacy concerns, especially if personal information is unintentionally exposed or used without consent.

Tools like deepfake and AI-generated image detectors may produce false positives or negatives, potentially leading to incorrect conclusions or accusations. It is essential to verify results through multiple sources before making claims. Users should also be mindful of the ethical responsibility of using the tool only for legitimate verification purposes, not for harmful surveillance or invasive investigations.

When using InVID for content verification, there is a risk of misinterpreting results, which could lead to erroneous conclusions. InVID provides tools for analyzing video authenticity by examining metadata, reverse image searching, and extracting keyframes, but the results do not automatically confirm authenticity. Researchers might misinterpret partial metadata or falsely correlate visual matches from reverse image searches, leading to an incorrect verification of content. Without a cautious and critical approach, users could mistake automated analysis for definitive proof, potentially spreading misinformation if content is improperly validated. It's essential to use InVID's findings as part of a broader verification process and corroborate with additional sources before drawing conclusions.

Guide

Guide To Using Reverse Image Search For Investigations

Tool provider

InVID is organized by a consortium of European research groups and businesses, coordinated by The Centre for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH) in Northern Greece.

The InVID project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program.

Page Maintainer
Martin Sona