Apple Reference Image has been announced by Apple, a feature that you could opt-in for the newly announced iPhone 18 Pro Max and iPhone 18 Pro that assists users to verify a picture has not been changed.
A new sensor is powering Apple Reference Image for the Main Camera that signals to the sensor data the moment of capture at the pixel level. When a photo is captured with the feature, the data signed is then passed on to Private Cloud Compute and then manufactures it to a reference image that is unalterable.
In the Photos app, the Reference images will show up with the original photo, which enables the user to compare the two photos visually to identify if there are any changes made to the photo. The feature is not going to be available at release in China because of regulatory requirements and is also unavailable in the EU.
