• MainMenu
  • Home
  • LocalBitcoins
  • Cheap VPS
  • Site Tree

Life of a webmaster

Another web-master's blog

  • Home
  • LocalBitcoins
  • Cheap VPS
  • Site Tree
Loading...
X

Life of a webmaster

GUI program to view and delete metadata in Linux

October 14, 2021

What is metadata

Metadata is additional information embedded in a file, for a photo, metadata is GPS coordinates, information about the camera, shooting settings, etc., for office documents, metadata is the author's name, the time the document was edited, the name of the organization, the editor program, etc. As it is said, metadata is information that describes other information.

Many file formats have embedded metadata. Sometimes the metadata can be viewed and even deleted using the usual editor tools (for example, in the Word editor and other office programs from Microsoft Office), but in any case, you need to know where and how to view or delete the metadata. The usual is a non-trivial task.

Why remove metadata

You do not need to remove metadata for files that you do not share with anyone, but use it individually. But you may want to delete, for example, the editing time of the document when sending it to the boss, or GPS coordinates for photos.

Removing metadata can be related to privacy and anonymity. If these questions do not bother you, then, again, you do not need to think about removing the metadata.

If you are not sure, for example, due to the fact that you simply do not know what kind of data is contained in the metadata, then this instruction will show you how to view and, if desired, remove metadata from any file.

A GUI metadata tool for Linux

There are quite a few powerful and high-quality programs for working with metadata, including for viewing and deleting them, in Linux, for example:

  • ExifTool
  • Exiv2
  • mat
  • mat2
  • Geotag

The first four are generic (support a wide variety of file formats) and powerful, but have a command line interface. Geotag has a graphical interface, but only supports some image formats and a limited set of metadata.

GUI program for viewing and deleting metadata in Linux

Not so long ago, Metadata Cleaner, a GUI program for removing metadata, finally appeared. Metadata Cleaner is a graphical interface for the mat2 utility.

Installation in Debian, Linux Mint, Ubuntu, Kali Linux their derivatives:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install metadata-cleaner

Installation on Arch Linux, Manjaro, BlackArch and their derivatives:

Start by installing pikaur: Automatic installation and update of AUR packages.

Then run the command:

pikaur -S metadata-cleaner

Once installed, you can find the program in the menu called “Metadata Cleaner”.

Or run it on the command line:

metadata-cleaner

To check and clear the metadata, click the “Add files” button in the upper left corner.

Next to the file name, in a red background, you will see the number of metadata found.

Click the arrow next to the file name to view the found metadata.

Click the “Clean” button to clear the metadata.

Please note that unlike mat2, Metadata Cleaner overwrites original files and does not leave backups. For this reason, the program displays a warning that reminds you to make a backup. If you want to continue, then click the “Clean” button again.

Please note that all files in the list are cleared at once!


Related articles:

  • Why computer can't connect to Wi-Fi Hotspot on Android phone for a long time (SOLVED) (57.7%)
  • How to check IP history for SSH sessions (54.7%)
  • How to change the VeraCrypt interface language in Linux (54.7%)
  • How to make VirtualBox virtual machines destroy on computer restart (54.7%)
  • How connect to the Tor network via bridge on Linux (53%)
  • Comparison of performance (data transfer rate) of OpenVPN over UDP and TCP (RANDOM - 53%)

This entry was posted in Linux and tagged in anonymity, GUI, Information Security, mat2, metadata.

Alex

View more posts from this author
« File attributes on Linux
Custom Google Chrome settings for each computer user »

Leave Your Observation Cancel observation

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • How to connect a TV to a computer in Windows 11
  • How to connect a TV to a computer in Linux in GNOME (Ubuntu)
  • How to connect a TV to a computer in Linux in Xfce (Kali Linux, Xubuntu)
  • How to connect a TV to a computer in Linux in Cinnamon (Linux Mint, LMDE)
  • How to check if a computer is using BIOS or UEFI; GRUB or systemd-boot bootloader; MBR or GPT partition table

Recent Comments

  • Alex on PostgreSQL error “An old version of the database format was found” (SOLVED)
  • Dillah on PostgreSQL error “An old version of the database format was found” (SOLVED)
  • sherif on phpMyAdmin error “Deprecation Notice in .\vendor\twig\twig\src\Loader\FilesystemLoader.php#40 realpath(): Passing null to parameter #1 ($path) of type string is deprecated” (SOLVED)
  • Alex on PostgreSQL error “An old version of the database format was found” (SOLVED)
  • icancto on PostgreSQL error “An old version of the database format was found” (SOLVED)

Search

Archives

  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • December 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019

Categories

  • Blog
  • Linux
  • Money and job
  • Notes
  • Software
  • Thailand

Copyright © 2022 Life of a webmaster. All Rights Reserved. Capture by Slocum Studio

Scroll Up