Field guide

How AI video detection works—and where it stops.

Useful detection is a chain of independent observations: file structure, representative frames, motion over time, audio, and provenance. None of them alone establish the truth of a video.

1. Start with a bounded, decodable clip

A safe service inspects its container before decoding: duration, streams, codec, dimensions, and whether the file actually has video. Limits make the analysis predictable and prevent a disguised or oversized media file from exhausting the worker.

2. Sample across time, not just at the beginning

Generative artifacts can be uneven. Representative frames distributed through a short clip are scored individually, then displayed as a timeline so a reviewer can see whether a signal persists or appears around one edit.

3. Keep temporal evidence separate

Frame-to-frame and second-order motion measures can point to unusual transitions, but they can also react to camera shake, compression, cuts, or lighting changes. They are evidence for review, never a stand-alone fake verdict.

4. Include audio and provenance coverage

An audio track, editor tag, or Content Credential can provide important context. Each is independent: a missing watermark does not prove a recording is natural, and missing C2PA is common after platform processing.

5. Report partial coverage honestly

A meaningful video report lists what ran, what failed, and what cannot be concluded. If a clip has no strong warning signal, the appropriate result is inconclusive—not verified human origin.

Try a bounded, explainable video screen.

Upload one short MP4, WebM, or AVI clip. AI Screener makes the available evidence and limitations visible rather than promising a universal detector.

Open the video checker