Answers to the most common questions about protecting photos from AI editing, deepfakes and face-swaps.
How do I stop someone editing my photo with AI?
You cannot stop it completely, but you can make it much harder. Protect the photo with Photo Shield before posting, keep accounts private where possible, avoid posting high-resolution close-up face photos publicly, and report fake or edited images to the platform.
How do I protect my Instagram photos from AI?
Run each photo through Photo Shield, download the protected PNG and upload that version to Instagram. Instagram compresses images, which weakens the layer somewhat, so keep the default settings and post the downloaded PNG.
Can AI still edit a protected image?
Yes, it can still try. The protective layer makes Stable-Diffusion-style editors misread the image, so edits tend to come out worse or broken, but it is a deterrent, not a guarantee. Other AI tools (such as ChatGPT or Gemini), newer models or heavy re-processing may not be affected.
How can I make a photo that AI cannot edit?
No tool can make a photo truly impossible to edit. Adversarial protection like Photo Shield is currently the most practical free option: it changes pixel values invisibly so AI models read the photo incorrectly.
How do I protect my face from deepfakes?
Limit how many clear, high-resolution face photos of you are public, protect the ones you do post with Photo Shield, use private accounts, and watch for impersonation. If a deepfake appears, report it to the platform and, where relevant, the police.
Is there a free tool to stop AI photo editing?
Yes - Photo Shield is free, needs no sign-up and runs entirely in your browser, so your photo is never uploaded.
Is my photo uploaded to your server?
No. The protection is calculated on your own device with TensorFlow.js. The photo never leaves your phone or computer.
Will people notice the change?
At the default (invisible) strength the change is not visible, even at full size. Higher strengths can show a faint pattern on smooth areas like sky or walls. Choose "Hidden layer" to see what was added.
Is this the same as PhotoGuard or Glaze?
It uses PhotoGuard's open-source encoder attack, but against TAESD - a small copy of the Stable Diffusion image encoder - so it runs free in your browser. That makes it weaker than the full research version. Glaze and Nightshade are separate projects focused on protecting artist styles from AI training.
Does it work on videos or PDFs?
This page protects photos (JPG, PNG, WEBP). More AI-safety tools are being added to EasyFilesConverter.
🛡️ Protect a photo now - free, in your browser
Last updated: October 2026