Recognized authorities and public trust
Recognized authorities help determine whether a valid C2PA signature should be treated as public trust. They do not turn provenance evidence into a truth verdict.
Meaning
What recognition changes in the report
Trusted status
A result can be Trusted when the C2PA evidence is valid and the certificate chain reaches a recognized trust source.
Trust policy
Recognition is policy context around the certificate chain. It is separate from whether the visual content is true.
Test environments
Test certificates are useful for learning and demos, but they are not recognized public production trust.
Comparison
Recognized trust vs. local or test signing
| Case | What the report can show | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Recognized chain | Trusted | The C2PA evidence validates and the signing certificate chains to a recognized source. |
| Valid local or test certificate | Signed but untrusted | The signature can be valid, but it is not recognized as public production trust. |
| Broken evidence | Invalid | C2PA data exists, but signature or integrity validation failed. |
| No embedded evidence | No credentials | No C2PA evidence was detected. This does not mean the media is false. |
Review workflow
How teams should use recognition data
Start with Trusted, Signed but untrusted, Invalid or No credentials.
Check issuer, subject, validity and chain information when available.
Use the report as one input in editorial, brand, compliance or technical review.
Do not treat recognized C2PA evidence as fake detection or proof of visual truth.