mat2 is a metadata removal tool that strips identifying information from files across a wide range of formats, available as a Python library, command-line interface, and file manager integration.
Metadata embedded in files—such as camera settings in photos, author information in documents, or timestamps in media—can reveal sensitive details about you. mat2 addresses this by detecting and removing metadata from supported file formats including images, PDFs, Office documents, audio, video, archives, and many others. The tool operates as a library called libmat2 that powers both a command-line interface and a Dolphin file manager service menu. Importantly, mat2 does not modify files in place; it produces cleaned copies with a .cleaned suffix, preserving the originals.
The tool suits anyone handling files that may contain sensitive metadata before sharing or publishing them. It works across Linux, macOS, and other platforms where Python 3.11 and the necessary format-specific dependencies can be installed. For users preferring a graphical interface, Metadata Cleaner provides a GTK application built on mat2's library. The project also supports deployment as a web service through mat2-web, and WordPress integration is available through separate plugins. A lightweight mode exists for users who want to preserve file data integrity at the cost of potentially leaving some metadata intact, controlled via the -L flag.
Development activity shows consistent maintenance with regular updates addressing edge cases and format support. The project maintains a test suite with coverage tracking to ensure reliability across its broad format support. Documentation acknowledges the fundamental limitation that no tool can guarantee complete metadata removal from complex file formats, and mat2 explicitly warns against assuming files are clean simply because no metadata is detected.
