ImageShield® Blog

Photo abuse runs rampant in our world today, yet is not a new phenomenon by any means. Manipulating media has its origins as early as ancient Romans removing portraits and names off of stone records in an attempt to remove a person’s identity from history altogether. Throughout history, the altering of media and information continued in different formats–from the censorship and photo editing of government officials like Joseph Stalin in the early 20th century–to our modern-day technology with Photoshop capabilities at our fingertips (Somers, 2020).

ImageShield found its origin in the mind of New York native Michael Gallagher, an entrepreneur who now operates out of northern Virginia. Michael founded the Stevie® Awards in 2002 to honor the millions of organizations, executives, and workers worldwide who quietly accomplish innovative and extraordinary things in the workplace every day. The Stevies have grown to be recognized as the world’s top business honors, now receiving more than 12,000 nominations each year from organizations in more than 70 nations.

Looking back, it was probably the 1960’s when photography lost its innocence. Photos have been manipulated since the medium’s birth in the middle of the 19th century, but it was during the decade of flower power and campus sit-ins that photo manipulation really took off, with airbrushing of photos of political figures and celebrities a common practice. Given where we are today, efforts back then were downright primitive and unbelievable. (Look at an airbrushed mantelpiece photo in any old movie for proof of this.) Sophisticated editing software and high-resolution photo content on our smartphones have generated a massive leap forward (if that’s the right word) in the photorealism and believability of manipulated content over a half-century ago.

OK, so you've gotten your no-obligation, no-signup, free report on the security of the photos you've shared on Facebook and Instagram, and to your alarm ImageShield® has found that one or more of the photos you've shared has possibly been misused.