Does Bitcoin timestamping workYes for showing a file existed by a time; no for authorship or ownership

TimeBinder adds a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes.

The file stays on your device. Your browser makes a digital fingerprint of the file. TimeBinder records the fingerprint and the time, not the file.

Short answer

Yes, for one narrow job. Anchoring a file’s fingerprint in a Bitcoin transaction lets anyone check that a file with that exact fingerprint existed by the time the transaction was confirmed. It does not show who made the file, who owns it, or that it is genuine.

What it does and does not show

Bitcoin’s blockchain is a public, widely copied ledger that is very hard to rewrite after the fact. If a file’s fingerprint is included in a transaction, the confirmed block gives a time by which that fingerprint existed. Change one byte of the file and the fingerprint no longer matches, so the check is exact.

What it cannot do: it does not show who created the file, whether the content is true or unedited before it was recorded, or who owns the rights. Confirmation also takes time, because it waits for Bitcoin blocks. See Bitcoin timestamp proof for a file.

How TimeBinder uses it

A TimeBind records a SHA-256 fingerprint of the exact file and a time, anchored to Bitcoin. The fingerprint is made in your browser and the file is not uploaded. Fingerprints are combined and the combined value is written to Bitcoin in an OP_RETURN field. An ASAP TimeBind gets its own transaction and can be checked independently of TimeBinder; a Pooled TimeBind is batched and takes longer to confirm.

It is a layer of protection, not a guarantee about any dispute, and not legal advice.

Make a TimeBind: first one free →

First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. An ASAP TimeBind is US$15.

Frequently asked questions

Does it work for any file type?

Yes. The fingerprint is calculated from the file’s bytes, so any file type can be fingerprinted.

Does the file go on the blockchain?

No. Only a fingerprint, combined with others, is anchored. The file stays on your device.

How long does it take to confirm?

It depends on Bitcoin blocks. A pooled record is batched and takes longer than an ASAP one, and neither is instant.

Does a Bitcoin timestamp show who owns a file?

No. It shows an exact file existed no later than the confirmed time, not who made it or owns it.

Sources

TimeBinder, Bitcoin timestamp proof for a file.
TimeBinder, What is blockchain timestamping?.

Related guides and tools

Your file’s fingerprint, anchored to a global network secured by real electricity and cryptography.

Editing a file—including with AI—changes its fingerprint, not its existing network record.

How this works

Your file’s SHA-256 fingerprint, a short code worked out from its exact contents, is made in your browser, and the file itself stays on your device. A cryptographic commitment to that fingerprint, which may be combined with others, is then anchored in a block on the Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin is secured by proof of work: computers around the world spend real electricity to add each block, and changing an earlier block would mean redoing that work faster than the rest of the network. Until that block is confirmed, your proof is pending. Once the Bitcoin anchoring is confirmed, you can verify the proof against that recorded commitment. The confirmed record can then be checked; Pooled TimeBinds are checked through TimeBinder, while ASAP TimeBinds can also be checked independently. If you check the file later and its fingerprint still matches, that shows the file existed no later than the recorded time. The record doesn’t show who made the file, whether AI was used, or that its contents are true.

Your filestays on your device
FingerprintSHA-256
Network timestampon Bitcoin

Record a fingerprint of the file you rely on

Add a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes: a dated, checkable record of the exact file you hold.

Open the app and sign in with email or Google.
Add your files. They stay on your computer.
Seal them and download your Proof of Time certificates.

Open TimeBinder →

First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. See pricing.