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Fingerprinting technology enabling known-content comparison across safety applications
Microsoft PhotoDNA is signature-comparison technology that creates fingerprints for matching images against reference material. Microsoft describes qualified free provision and has licensed source code to named organisations. Its software rights, the service used to run it and access to a reference collection are separate arrangements.
Microsoft's March 2012 account names the Netherlands Forensics Institute and New Zealand's Department of Internal Affairs as source-code licensees. The Tech Coalition later developed a sublicense route and announced expanded subject matter in January 2025. StopNCII's March 2024 on-device integration predates that expansion announcement, so the latter cannot be called the first adult-image use. Qualified free provision is not an open-source licence and does not automatically include NCMEC or another organisation's reference data.
Microsoft → Microsoft PhotoDNA
2012-03-19 – 2012-03-19
Licensor account says Netherlands Forensics Institute and NZ Department of Internal Affairs had licensed source code. Not executed agreements, current licences or particular enforcement actions.
StopNCII → Microsoft PhotoDNA
2024-03-13 – 2024-03-13
SWGfL13March2024announcement describes integration with Microsoft support. This predates TCJanuary2025expanded-sublicence announcement; no executed assignment or licence terms acquired.
Tech Coalition PhotoDNA sublicense route → Microsoft PhotoDNA
2025-01-27 – 2025-01-27
Announcement adds terrorist content and adult NCII alongside CSAM. This is the reported TC agreement expansion, not first-ever PhotoDNA use for adult NCII.
Microsoft → Microsoft PhotoDNA
Microsoft describes signature computation and qualified free provision/donation, not open-source publication or access to every hash collection.
Tech Coalition PhotoDNA sublicensing: delegated access, undisclosed decision terms ↗
Microsoft PhotoDNA: software, hosted service and reference-data access ↗
Microsoft → describes qualified free software provision → Microsoft PhotoDNA
Reported by the cited source
Microsoft describes signature computation and qualified free provision/donation, not open-source publication or access to every hash collection.
Microsoft → reported named source-code licences in March 2012 → Microsoft PhotoDNA
2012-03-19 – 2012-03-19
Reported by the cited source
Licensor account says Netherlands Forensics Institute and NZ Department of Internal Affairs had licensed source code. Not executed agreements, current licences or particular enforcement actions.
Tech Coalition PhotoDNA sublicense route → reports expanded permitted subject matter → Microsoft PhotoDNA
2025-01-27 – 2025-01-27
Reported by the cited source
Announcement adds terrorist content and adult NCII alongside CSAM. This is the reported TC agreement expansion, not first-ever PhotoDNA use for adult NCII.
StopNCII → announced on-device integration in March 2024 → Microsoft PhotoDNA
2024-03-13 – 2024-03-13
Reported by the cited source
SWGfL13March2024announcement describes integration with Microsoft support. This predates TCJanuary2025expanded-sublicence announcement; no executed assignment or licence terms acquired.