Today, Truepic announced its acquisition of Fourandsix Technologies, Inc., a San Jose-based computer software company that specializes in digital photo forensics. Truepic will be acquiring all intellectual property and software, including the “Izitru” code base, one of the internet’s most advanced image forensics technologies.
Since 2014, Fourandsix has been the leader in developing post-capture photo forensics technologies. Co-founded by Hany Farid, renowned Dartmouth professor and noted expert in the digital forensics field, and Kevin Conner, ex-VP of Product Management for Adobe’s digital imaging business, the duo launched the Izitru platform. Izitru, an API-based system for running advanced photo forensics tools, is the leading platform for detecting photo manipulation to pre-existing images. In 2018, the technology was licensed to DARPA (The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) for its media forensics (MediFor) research initiative.
“Our teams have a shared passion for bringing trust back to the internet,” said Jeffrey McGregor, CEO, Truepic. “Hany and Kevin’s work was far ahead of its time, for the first time providing the internet with a real method for rooting out image-based fraud and disinformation. Their expertise and technology are the perfect complement to Truepic’s controlled camera technology. Together, we will build a robust platform to bring trust back to photos on the internet.”
As part of the acquisition, Farid will join Truepic’s Board of Advisors, supporting the development of a new product specifically focused on the processing of pre-existing photos for fraud detection. Farid’s expertise in post-capture image analysis will allow Truepic to introduce new computer vision testing methods and further strengthen the company’s core product offerings. “We have seen a slow and steady decline in our ability to trust digital content. The combination of Truepic’s and Fourandsix’s technologies promises to make significant advances in returning trust to what we see and hear online,” said Farid.
“Hany is a pioneer in the photo forensics field and we are thrilled to bring him on to our board of advisors,” said Craig Stack, Truepic Founder and COO. “We know that bad actors will continue to spread disinformation and defraud the public with fake or manipulated images. To counter this threat, Truepic must ensure it has the foremost experts on our side, and there is no better individual than Hany to join the team and help us fight back.”
Farid has spent nearly two decades as a leader in the field of digital image forensics, including his tenure as a Professor at Dartmouth College where he also served as Chair of the Computer Science department. Beginning in the summer 2019, Farid will join the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley with a joint appointment in the School of Information and the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences.
About Truepic
Truepic is the trust authority for visual media. Truepic provides trust in digital images by bolstering the value of authentic photos and videos, while leading the fight against deceptive ones. Truepic pioneered “controlled capture” technology for a new breed of visual media: photos and videos with verifiable origin, contents, and metadata. For traditional photos and videos, Truepic uses industry-leading image forensics to help customers evaluate their trustworthiness. Its promise is simple, yet profound: photos and videos you can trust. More information can be found at www.truepic.com
