Have you ever wondered where your videos end up online? Are you curious to know who is using them and where?
However, it’s important to monitor your work and ensure that it’s being used appropriately.
But how do you find out where your videos have been shared? The answer lies in a simple yet powerful tool called reverse video search.
In this knowledgebase article, we’ll explore reverse video search and how you can use it to discover websites using your video content.
1 What Is a Reverse Video Search?
A reverse video search is a process of finding a video’s original source or creator using a screenshot (or image) or thumbnail from the video.Â
This can be useful in cases where you want to verify the authenticity of a video, find the source of a viral video, or simply locate a video you saw online in the past.
The process involves using specialized tools to analyze the video and provide you with information about its origin, such as the date it was created, the location where it was filmed, and the person or organization that created it.
2 How to Utilize Reverse Video Search for SEO
A Reverse video search can help you identify the keywords, tags, and descriptions that are already being used to optimize similar content.
Reverse video search can be a helpful SEO tool to track your video content’s usage on other websites and social media platforms. This helps you identify backlink opportunities and monitor your content’s use across the web.
To find where your video content is being used, simply upload the video image or frame on Google Lens or Bing Visual Search as described above.
Once you’ve identified the websites or social media profiles using your content, you can reach out to them and request proper credit or a link back to your website.
By using reverse video search for SEO, you can safeguard your content and potentially increase website traffic through backlinks and proper attribution.
3 Performing a Reverse Video Search on Your Desktop
In this section, we will guide you through conducting a desktop reverse video search using two popular platforms: Google Lens and Bing Visual Search.
Before starting, you’ll need to take a screenshot of the video in question, which you can find on YouTube or other platforms. If you can’t take a focused shot on your desktop, follow these steps to take a screenshot on Windows or Mac:
When taking the screenshot, look for a clear part of the video or screenshot the thumbnail, as those tend to produce more accurate search results.
Now, let’s look at how to use the captured image to reverse video search using different browsers.
3.1 Performing a Reverse Video Search Using Google Lens
To begin, ensure that you have Google installed on your desktop and open google.com in your browser. Then, locate and click on the ‘Search by image’ icon, which is depicted below.
This will bring up the Google Lens area, where you can either upload the image or paste the image URL. Since you’ve taken a screenshot of the video, you will want to choose the upload option.
After uploading the image, Google Lens scans it and displays similar results of videos or images from the internet, along with their sources.
To explore the results further, click on the ‘Find image source’ link above the image for additional information and sources.
This will display additional results that match the video screenshot along with the sizes of the image sources.
3.2 Performing a Reverse Video Search Using Bing Visual Search
First, make sure to use Bing on your desktop. Open the browser and go to bing.com. Look for the ‘Search using an image’ icon and click on it to proceed.
Then, Microsoft Bing will provide you with the option to upload the image. So, you will need to use the upload option to upload your video image.
Once you upload the video’s image, Bing will display visually similar videos or images, related pages, and associated content. To gather more information about the results, you can hover over them to view the image sizes and source links.
4 Reverse Video Search on Mobile Devices
If you’re an Android or iOS user, you can still perform a reverse video search. However, it’s important to take a screenshot of the video first.
Once you have the screenshot, use the cropping feature to remove unnecessary areas and include only the video image.
To proceed with the reverse video search, ensure that you have the Google app on your Android device or download it from the App Store if you have an iOS phone.
Open the Google app, search for google.com, and click the ‘Search by Image’ icon.
This will open Google Lens. You will need to upload the screenshot image from the video by selecting it from your gallery.
After uploading the image, Google Lens will scan it and provide similar results from the web.
You can also scroll down a bit to see other similar images and their sources.
However, click ‘See exact match’ on any search result for more variations. You’ll find pages with the video, some sites with the video, and the thumbnail sizes.
That’s it! We hope this guide has helped you to do a reverse video search. If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact our support team—they’re available to assist you anytime.