Provenance Manifest
Definition
A structured record, either embedded in a file or stored externally, that documents a media asset's origin, capture conditions, chain of custody, and editing history. A manifest may be signed, unsigned, or verified against a ledger depending on the system.
- Storage
- Embedded in file or held externally
- Records
- Origin, capture conditions, chain of custody, edit history
- Verification options
- Signed, unsigned, or ledger-verified
- Domain
- Media provenance and authenticity systems
Common questions
What does a signed provenance manifest add over an unsigned one?+
A signed manifest is cryptographically tied to the capturing device or platform, so tampering with either the manifest or the media invalidates the signature, whereas an unsigned manifest can be edited to match altered content without any built-in detection.
How does a blockchain-based provenance system change what a manifest can prove?+
Recording a manifest's hash on a distributed ledger creates an independent, hard-to-alter timestamp of when that provenance record existed, letting an investigator later confirm the manifest was not fabricated or backdated after the fact, something a standalone signed file cannot do on its own.
Related terms
- C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity)
- An open technical standard that embeds cryptographically signed provenance assertions into media files at the point of capture or editing. A C2PA...
- Cryptographic Hash
- A fixed-length digest produced from a file's bytes by an algorithm such as MD5 (128-bit), SHA-1 (160-bit), or SHA-256 (256-bit). Identical files...
- NFT (Non-Fungible Token)
- A unique cryptographic token on a blockchain associated with a reference to a media asset. NFTs record ownership transfers and can carry...
- Oracle Problem
- In blockchain contexts, the gap between what the ledger records and the real-world state it is meant to represent. A blockchain has...
- Permissioned Ledger
- A distributed ledger in which participation is controlled by a known set of validators (for example, Hyperledger Fabric). Unlike public blockchains, a...