TIFF Image
| Format | TIFF Image |
|---|---|
| Short name | TIFF |
| Category | media |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, QNX |
| Crush support | Supported (ImageParser) |
| Status | Reviewed |
| Last reviewed | 2026-10-04 |
Forensic relevance
Flexible container format for high-quality images, document scans, and camera RAW derivatives. Supports multiple pages in a single file — multi-page TIFFs are common for scanned documents and fax transmissions (CCITT Group 3/4 compression). Carries extensive EXIF, XMP, IPTC, and GPS metadata in Image File Directories (IFDs). Two byte-order variants: little-endian ('II', Intel) and big-endian ('MM', Motorola), each with a different magic sequence. TIFF is the base container for many RAW camera formats (CR2, NEF, DNG) and for EXIF metadata embedded in JPEG files. Digital libraries and forensic archives commonly use TIFF as the preservation format. SubIFDs can contain embedded thumbnails or alternate image representations. A C2PA (Content Credentials) manifest, when present, is carried in tag 0xCD41 (52545) of the last IFD in the main-IFD chain — relevant for TIFF-based RAW formats (DNG, TIFF/EP) as well as plain TIFF.
Signatures
| Offset | Hex | ASCII (non-printable as .) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| offset 0 (0x0) | 49 49 2A 00 | II*. | TIFF little-endian (Intel byte order, 'II') |
| offset 0 (0x0) | 4D 4D 00 2A | MM.* | TIFF big-endian (Motorola byte order, 'MM') |
| offset 0 (0x0) | 49 49 2B 00 | II+. | BigTIFF little-endian (version 43, 'II') |
| offset 0 (0x0) | 4D 4D 00 2B | MM.+ | BigTIFF big-endian (version 43, 'MM') |
Known extensions
.tif, .tiff
References
- TIFF Revision 6.0 specification (Aldus/Adobe, copy hosted by ITU) https://www.itu.int/itudoc/itu-t/com16/tiff-fx/docs/tiff6.pdf
- TIFF format overview (Wikipedia) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TIFF
- TIFF tags reference (Library of Congress) https://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/content/tiff_tags.shtml
- ExifTool — TIFF/EXIF metadata read/write https://exiftool.org/
- C2PA Technical Specification (Content Credentials) https://spec.c2pa.org/specifications/specifications/2.4/specs/C2PA_Specification.html
Cite this entry
Crush Format Reference, “TIFF Image”. https://kalink0.github.io/crush-forensics/formats/tiff/ — source: crush/data/build_formats_db.py at commit 640a2a9928f4e36a976b89901512a8dce824d093, built 2026-10-21 06:46:19 UTC.
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