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Introduction

tip

You're strongly encouraged to read this introduction and Getting started to give you some basic background and context, before you dive right into development. Working with manifests also has some crucial information common to all the language APIs

Overview

The Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) creates formal standards for the source and history (or provenance) of media content.

The Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI) is an Adobe-led cross-industry consortium that advocates for the adoption of Content Credentials based on C2PA standards. CAI develops and maintains open-source software based on C2PA technical specifications.

WebsiteOrganizationPurpose / Description
c2pa.orgC2PA / Linux FoundationStandards body
Technical specifications and guidance documents
contentcredentials.orgC2PAConsumer-friendly site
VerifyC2PA / AdobeWeb-based tool to display Content Credentials
contentauthenticity.orgCAIIndustry consortium
Open-source software and community resources

C2PA

C2PA provides the technical specifications and open standards for content provenance for use by creators, editors, publishers, media platforms, and consumers. C2PA is a mutually-governed standards development organization (SDO) under the structure of the Linux Foundation’s Joint Development Foundation.

The "cr" icon

The "cr" icon is trademarked by the C2PA and is the de facto mark for C2PA user experiences. Use this icon to provide a consistent user experience and set expectations that an application, tool, or website implements C2PA standards.

CAI

The CAI is creating a secure end-to-end system for digital content provenance through open-source development and cross-industry collaboration with software, publishing, and social media companies, human rights organizations, photojournalists, and academic researchers. CAI members include Adobe, Microsoft, The New York Times Co., The Associated Press, Intel, Qualcomm, and many more.

CAI open-source software

The Content Authenticity Initiative's open-source offerings consist of:

The Rust SDK is the fundamental library underlying everything else. The c2patool uses it "under the hood" and language-specific APIs are all generated from it.

c2patool

C2patool is a command-line utility for working with C2PA manifest data. Use this tool to work with assets in a supported file format to:

  • Read a JSON report of manifest data.
  • Attach a manifest store to an asset, if it doesn't already have an associated manifest store.
  • Add a manifest to to the associated manifest store if the asset does have an associated manifest store.

Rust SDK

The Rust SDK enables adding C2PA capabilities to a desktop, mobile, or embedded application. Use the Rust SDK to:

  • Create and sign C2PA claims and manifests.
  • Embed a manifest store into certain asset file formats.
  • Parse and validate manifests found in certain asset file formats.

Language-specific libraries

CAI includes libraries that provide APIs for JavaScript, C++/C, Python, and Node.js.

JavaScript SDK

The client JavaScript SDK enables working with manifest data in the browser. Use this SDK to:

  • Verify and display manifest data on a website or web application.
  • Link manifest data displayed on your site to Verify.
  • Easily add user interface elements to your website that display manifest data while following the C2PA user experience recommendations.

Other languages

The C++/C, Python, and Node.js APIs are all early prerelease libraries. They may have bugs and unimplemented features, and their APIs are subject to change.