Exifcleaner Updates & Release Notes

ExifCleaner 4.5.0

ExifCleaner 4.5.0 cleans PNG and JPEG files with the app's own built-in cleaner when Save as copy is on, fixes WebP resolution loss in that same mode, and removes JPEG content credentials to match what the bundled ExifTool already removed.

What's new

• PNG and JPEG copies are now cleaned by the app's own built-in cleaner. With Save as copy on, PNG and JPEG files are cleaned by a built-in cleaner instead of the bundled ExifTool, whenever it supports every preservation setting you have turned on. Files it declines to handle are cleaned by ExifTool exactly as before. Every cleaned copy is reopened and checked by ExifTool for leftover metadata before it is kept; if the check finds anything unexpected, the copy is discarded, your original file is left untouched, and the file is reported as failed. Cleaning many PNG or JPEG files as copies in one batch now costs a few extra milliseconds per file from that check — measured at about +5.9 ms per JPEG and +6.6 ms per PNG on a development machine — which was judged worth paying so a copy with leftover metadata is never silently kept.
• WebP now keeps its resolution with Save as copy on. With Preserve resolution on, WebP files are cleaned by ExifTool and keep their resolution. This removes the 4.4.0 known limitation that WebP resolution was never kept in that mode. …

ExifCleaner 4.4.0

ExifCleaner 4.4.0 removes metadata that earlier versions left behind in comments, TIFF and RAW files, keeps a cleaned file's print resolution, and recovers from writes that run past their time limit.

Fixes

• Files whose only metadata was a comment are now cleaned. A file whose only removable metadata was a free-text comment, such as a JPEG comment, was reported as having no removable metadata and skipped. It is now counted and the comment is removed. The same comment field was measured on GIF and RW2 files.
• TIFF: descriptive and camera tags are removed from the first page (#199). ImageDescription, Make, Model, Software, ModifyDate, Artist, Copyright, Rating and the Windows XP title, comment, author, keyword and subject tags no longer survive a default clean. Image data is unchanged, and TIFF writes now go through the staged, verified output path in both modes, so a failed write leaves the original untouched.
• RAW: identifying metadata is removed. CR2, CR3, DNG, RW2 and the other supported RAW formats no longer keep identifying text, camera body and lens serial numbers, owner names, the DNG raw-data ID and original raw file name, or capture dates and time offsets that ExifTool can delete. Make, Model and the DNG camera and color tags are kept, and the image data is unchanged. …

ExifCleaner 4.3.0

ExifCleaner 4.3.0 routes WebP metadata removal through a new native engine, and stops a benign ExifTool warning from being reported as a failed inspection.

Native WebP handling

• WebP files are now cleaned by a native engine rather than by shelling out to ExifTool. The native path is used only when it reports the capability for the exact request; anything it declines falls back to the existing ExifTool path.
• Every native write goes through a staged, verified publication. The cleaned result is written to a private staging location, verified, and only then published over the original. A write that cannot be verified does not replace your file.
• Uncertain processing preserves the source. If the native path fails in a way that is not provably safe to retry, the source file is left unchanged rather than being replaced by a partially processed result.

Fixes

• Benign ExifTool [minor] warnings no longer fail metadata display (#344). Files that cleaned correctly but produced a non-fatal warning previously surfaced as an inspection failure.

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Known limitations in 4.3.0

No executable release-blocking known gaps are approved for this release; documented format constraints follow below.

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Format constraints …

ExifCleaner 4.2.1

ExifCleaner 4.2.1 makes the supported-format promise match what the bundled metadata engine can safely process.

Format support

• M4A is now supported. Audio metadata is removed through the same staged, verified publication path used by other media files.
• MKV is no longer accepted. ExifTool can read Matroska metadata but cannot write MKV files, so rejecting the format before processing is the truthful behavior.
• The README now lists the app's exact intake allowlist instead of ExifTool's much broader catalog, and CI prevents that list from drifting from source.
• DOCX remains unsupported.

The patch includes a metadata-bearing M4A fixture, explicit MKV rejection coverage, and installed-artifact M4A smoke coverage.

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Known limitations in 4.2.1

No executable release-blocking known gaps are approved for this release; documented format constraints follow below.

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Format constraints

• RAF: cleaning is refused and the source is left unchanged because a safe cleaned RAF artifact cannot currently be guaranteed.
• PDF: ExifTool uses reversible updates, so prior metadata may remain recoverable.
• MKV: unsupported because ExifTool does not expose a writable removal path.
• TIFF and AVIF: user-reported partial-removal behavior remains under investigation.

Downloads

| Platform | File | | --- | --- | …

ExifCleaner 4.2.0

ExifCleaner 4.2.0 makes the first run calmer and keeps the packaged privacy toolchain current without adding background network activity.

A clearer first run

• The empty intake is now centered as one responsive composition instead of feeling split between copy and controls.
• Choose files is the clear primary action, with Choose folder available beside it and drag and drop unchanged.
• The intake explains whether ExifCleaner will save cleaned copies or modify originals, using the current setting rather than a generic promise.
• Nested folder intake reports unsupported files and folders it could not read instead of silently losing that summary.
• Help now includes New Releases, which opens the GitHub Releases page only when you click it. ExifCleaner does not poll for updates.

Localization with provenance

• Romanian is now fully supported. The 70 strings contributed in PR #297 are preserved exactly and credited to their contributor.
• Every supported locale covers the first-run and New Releases vocabulary.
• Translation records now distinguish existing community work from assisted drafts, track the English source each string translates, and expose stale or missing work without silently overwriting it.

Runtime and release maintenance

• The bundled ExifTool is updated from 13.50 to 13.59 for Unix and 32-bit-compatible Windows packages, with pinned upstream SHA-256 verification. …

ExifCleaner 4.1.0

ExifCleaner 4.1.0 makes batch cleaning safer to understand and harder to misread.

Clearer results

• Each file now reports what actually happened: metadata removed, already clean, unchanged, or refused.
• Metadata details open with removed fields visible immediately. Fields that remain are kept in one secondary disclosure.
• Files can be sorted by name, type, source size, and before/after metadata counts while folder groups stay intact.
• The size column shows the original and resulting sizes instead of implying they are the same value.

Safer processing

• New installs default to Save as copy. Existing preferences are preserved during migration.
• RAF files are refused without writing because ExifTool cannot safely produce the requested cleaned RAF artifact. The rest of the batch continues.
• Already-clean files avoid an unnecessary rewrite. When macOS attribute removal is requested, only that requested operation runs.
• MP4 and MOV processing now explicitly clears movie, track, and media create/modify dates and verifies the generated artifact before success.
• File paths containing carriage returns or line feeds are rejected at both the IPC and ExifTool boundaries.

Easier intake and navigation

• Native Choose files and Choose folder actions complement drag and drop.
• Unsupported files are summarized once instead of disappearing silently.
• The drop area shows whether output will be written as cleaned copies or in place. …

ExifCleaner 4.0.1

ExifCleaner 4.0.1 is a focused data-safety and release-reliability update.

Data safety

• Save as copy now preserves the original. The app writes to the actual collision-safe _cleaned path and Reveal follows that returned path.
• RAW files always use a copy. Supported RAW formats never overwrite the submitted original, even when Save as copy is disabled.
• RAW and video output is verified before success. Failed generated output is removed instead of being reported as complete.

Privacy

• Remove macOS attributes is now connected to the processing path. When enabled, it clears extended attributes from the artifact that was actually written.
• The macOS attribute command now passes filenames as fixed arguments rather than through a shell.

Release reliability

• Installed builds now exercise the save-as-copy and advertised-format contracts on macOS, Windows, and Linux before release artifacts are accepted.
• Release notes must match the package version, known gaps must remain machine-readable, and two-part internal tags are rejected from the public release namespace.
• The release also includes the previously unreleased SIZE display, settings icon, PDF fixture, per-launch test-profile, and release-gate fixes from #300, #301, #305, #306, and #292.

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Known limitations in 4.0.1

• Impact: A cleaned MP4 may still include original create-date metadata values. …

The first major release in 5 years — a complete rebuild from the ground up. Same privacy-first philosophy, everything else modernized.

Highlights

New Privacy Controls

• Preserve photo orientation — Photos stay upright after cleaning (enabled by default)
• Save as copy — Create a _cleaned copy instead of overwriting the original
• Preserve timestamps — Keep original file dates intact
• Preserve color profile — Retain ICC color data for accurate colors
• Remove macOS extended attributes — Strip quarantine and Spotlight metadata (macOS only)

All toggleable from the new Settings panel.

Folder Support

Drop an entire folder and ExifCleaner processes every supported file inside, recursively.

Metadata Inspector

Click any processed file to see exactly which metadata tags were removed — a full before/after diff.

25 Languages

Now available in 25 languages with in-app language switching — no need to change your system locale.

New since v3.6.0: Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Hungarian, Malayalam, Persian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Slovak, Swedish, Turkish, Vietnamese

Redesigned Interface

• Modern React-based UI with a clean design system
• Dark mode that follows your system preference (or override manually)
• Settings drawer with all options in one place
• Status bar showing progress, file counts, and tags removed

Under the Hood

• Electron 35 (up from 11) — 5 years of Chromium security patches …