Nikon has announced the development of a special firmware update to equip its Z6 III with an option allowing captured images to be embedded with a C2PA-compliant traceability marker. The goal: to guarantee the authenticity of a shot from capture to distribution. A feature currently found on only a handful of cameras, such as the Leica M11-P or Sony A1 and A9 III.
At the end of 2023, the Leica M11-P became the first camera to offer full in-camera traceability according to the C2PA standard. In 2024, Sony followed suit by offering a similar option for its flagship models (A1, A9 III, A7S III, and A7 IV). Meanwhile, Nikon is working on implementing this feature in the Z9. These models will soon be joined by the Nikon Z6 III (read our full review). Indeed, Nikon announced that its teams are developing a firmware update for its versatile camera.
The new firmware, currently undergoing testing within news agencies and by selected professionals, is scheduled to be rolled out to certain agencies starting mid-2025 and more broadly thereafter.
Nikon is proceeding in a similar manner to Sony, initially limiting this feature to selected press organizations. Eventually, and if implemented similarly to the Leica M11-P, it will likely become an option available in the camera menus, enabling users to embed specific metadata into their images.
Combating AI-generated images: a key priority
In the era of fake news and AI-generated images, ensuring the traceability of authentic photographs has become critically important. To ensure proper use of images, several news agencies, software companies, and camera manufacturers joined forces back in 2019 to form the Content Authenticity Initiative.
A protocol has been established, and on the Content Credentials platform, it is possible to view the original shot, along with all editing operations performed (such as color adjustments, cropping, exposure modifications, etc.), as well as the software used for processing.
Our first impressions
The gradual rollout of the C2PA standard across camera systems is very welcome, given the surge of false information and AI-generated images. True, it will take several more months before this dedicated Nikon Z6 III firmware is available to the general public, but the initiative is certainly a step in the right direction.
We now hope that more and more manufacturers will embed anti-tampering tools by default — and that, eventually, such protections will become standard across all new cameras.
