Video certificate: get it before you post
Get the certificate for your video before you post it, and certify the final export – the exact file you are about to upload. The certificate is a PDF with your name, the file's name and size, its unique fingerprint and an independent date and time. If someone later reuploads your video or uses it in their own content, you have a document showing that your file existed on that date, unchanged since, with your declaration that you made it. You can attach it to a platform copyright report or show it to anyone, and its QR code lets them check it themselves.
This is general information, not legal advice for a specific dispute.
Why before posting, not after
The moment you post, your video becomes public with a date the platform controls. That is useful, but it is not yours: an account can be deleted, a video can be taken down, and a reupload can appear on another platform within hours. A certificate made before you post gives you a date that does not depend on any platform and that no one can move later.
The date on the certificate comes from BORICA B-Trust, an EU-supervised trust provider, and EU courts presume it accurate. It is not a date you typed in, and it is not StampR's server clock.
Getting a certificate after something has already been copied is still worth doing for your future videos, but it cannot reach back in time. A certificate dated after the reupload shows little about who had the video first.
Which file to certify
Certify the final export – the .mp4 or .mov you upload to YouTube, TikTok or Instagram. This is the file the certificate describes, byte for byte.
The certificate records the file's fingerprint (SHA-256): a long code calculated from every byte of the file, so that even a tiny change gives a completely different code. That has two practical consequences:
- Keep that exact file unchanged. Store it somewhere safe and do not re-export, trim or rename-and-edit it. If you change it, it no longer matches the certificate.
- The platform's copy will not match. YouTube, TikTok and Instagram re-compress what you upload, so a file downloaded back from the platform is a different file. That is normal. Your certificate matches your original export; the comparison with a reupload is about what the video shows and which date came first.
If you want more than the final cut, you can also certify your raw footage or your editing project. Several files can go into one ZIP and be certified together. Raw clips and project files are the kind of material that shows how the video was made, which matters if someone ever claims they made it first.
Long videos and the 500 MB limit
You can certify files up to 500 MB each. The fingerprint is calculated in your browser, so your video is not uploaded to StampR at all unless you tick the option to save the file for public display (that option is limited to 20 MB, which most videos exceed).
- Final export under 500 MB: certify it as it is. Most shorts, Reels and many YouTube videos fit.
- Final export over 500 MB: certify a smaller master export of the same video, or split it into parts under 500 MB and certify each part. Smaller parts can share one ZIP, as long as the ZIP itself stays under 500 MB. Keep whichever files you certified unchanged.
What the certificate shows
| On the certificate | What it tells someone looking at it |
|---|---|
| Your name | Who declared authorship |
| File name and size | Which video file it is about |
| Description of the work | What the video is, in your words |
| Fingerprint (SHA-256) | The unique code of that exact file |
| Qualified timestamp from BORICA B-Trust | The independent date and time the file existed |
| Your authorship declaration | That you stated you made the work |
| QR code | A link to a public page where anyone can check the certificate |
Someone reuploaded your video: what to do
- Save what you see. Take screenshots and copy the links of the reupload, the account and the date it appeared. Posts can disappear quickly.
- Find your certificate and your original file. Check that the date on your certificate is earlier than the reupload.
- Use the platform's copyright report form. YouTube, TikTok and Instagram all have one. The forms usually ask where your original can be found and what was copied. Where you can add details or attachments, mention the certificate, its number and its verification link.
- If you contact the person or business directly, stay calm and factual. Send the certificate PDF or the QR code and say what you want: credit, removal or payment.
- If it is serious money, a business using your video in its advertising, for example, talk to a lawyer and bring the certificate, your original file and your raw footage.
Be honest about this part: the certificate is evidence you can attach and show. Each platform decides its own reports, and nothing guarantees that a platform will accept or act on a certificate. What it does is make your side easy to check.
How other people check it
Anyone can scan the QR code or search by fingerprint, serial or certificate number at stampr.eu/hash_search. If your certificate is private, the public page shows only the evidence: certificate number, serial, fingerprint and timestamp. Your name, the description and the PDF appear there only if you made them public. Either way, the PDF you send someone shows everything, and the public page confirms it is genuine.
What the certificate does not do
- It does not create or record any rights. Your copyright exists automatically from the moment you make the video, and in most countries there is no register of works to sign up for.
- It isn't an entry in any public register, and it does not decide who owns a video in a dispute. A court or the parties do that.
- It does not cover what was never yours. If your video is gameplay, music or clips from other creators, the certificate covers your recording and your edit, not the game or the music inside it.
- It does not cover ideas, formats or titles – only the exact file.
- It does not show that a video is human-made rather than AI-generated. StampR does not check that.
- In the US, if you ever need to sue in federal court over a US work, registration with the U.S. Copyright Office comes first. The certificate does not replace that.
What it does do is narrow and useful: it shows that this exact file existed at that moment, unchanged since, and that you declared it yours.
Related reading
- Content theft guide – what to do step by step when your work is copied.
- What a declaration of authorship is – what exactly you are declaring.
- Do timestamp certificates hold up in court? – what the date means in a dispute.
- Authorship evidence options compared – how a certificate compares with other ways.
Frequently asked questions
When should I get a certificate for my video?
Before you post it. A certificate made before posting has a date that does not depend on any platform. One made after a reupload has appeared shows little about who had the video first.
Which file should I certify?
The final export you upload, kept unchanged afterwards. If you want, also certify your raw footage or editing project, alone or together in a ZIP.
My video is bigger than 500 MB. What can I do?
The limit is 500 MB per file, and a ZIP counts as one file. Certify a smaller master export of the same video, or split it into parts under 500 MB and certify each part. Keep whichever files you certified unchanged.
Do I have to upload my video to StampR?
No. The fingerprint is calculated in your browser and the video stays on your device. It is only uploaded if you tick the option to save the file for public display, which is limited to 20 MB.
Why does the video on YouTube not match my certificate?
Platforms re-compress uploads, so their copy is a different file. Your certificate matches your original export, which is why you keep that file unchanged.
Will YouTube or TikTok remove a reupload if I show the certificate?
There is no guarantee. Each platform decides its own copyright reports. The certificate is evidence you can attach or show, and anyone can check it with the QR code or at stampr.eu/hash_search.
How much does it cost?
The first certificate on an account is €4.90, then €6.80 each, or less in packs of 10, 50 or 200. There is no subscription.
Certify your work with a trusted date.
Create a certificate →Your first certificate is €4.90 with an account.