Google Shows How to Remove Stock-Photo Watermarks

Google’s research division detailed just how easy it is for computer algorithms to bypass standard photo watermarking practices, stripping those images of copyright protection and making them vulnerable to reposting across the internet without credit.

The team behind the watermark-removal algorithm was able to train software with enough public examples to identify watermark patterns and then, through a process called, “multi-image matting,” separate the watermark’s components from the rest of the image.

Then, because the software understands the elements of the watermark like its opacity, structure, and shadow or colour gradient effects, Google’s algorithm is able to remove it from any photo containing that specific watermark or a similar one.

UCJ, UNILORIN.