How to Automate Metadata Removal with n8n & MetaScrub API

What Is n8n?

n8n is a free, open-source workflow automation platform — a self-hostable alternative to Zapier and Make (Integromat). It lets you connect hundreds of apps and services visually by linking nodes in a workflow editor. You can run n8n on your own server for complete privacy, or use n8n Cloud for a managed experience.

By connecting n8n with the MetaScrub API, you can automatically remove metadata from files as part of any workflow — for example, cleaning every photo uploaded to a Google Drive folder, stripping metadata from email attachments, or sanitizing documents before publishing.

Why Automate Metadata Removal?

Manually cleaning metadata from every file is tedious and easy to forget. Automation ensures that every file passing through your workflow is stripped of sensitive data — GPS coordinates, author names, camera serial numbers, software versions, and more — before it reaches its destination.

• For businesses — automatically sanitize documents, images and reports before sending to clients or publishing online. Protect employee names, internal tool versions and geolocation data.
• For e-commerce — clean product photos before uploading to marketplaces. Remove camera info and GPS coordinates from every listing image automatically.
• For content creators — strip metadata from media files in your publishing pipeline. Protect source identity and location data in every photo, video and document.
• For compliance — automate GDPR and privacy compliance by removing personal data from files before storage or sharing.

What You Need

Step-by-Step: Build a Metadata Removal Workflow in n8n

Method:        POST
URL:           https://metascrub.xyz/api/v1/remove-metadata

Headers:
  X-API-Key:   ms_your_api_key_here

Body Type:     Form-Data / Multipart
Body Parameters:
  Name:        file
  Type:        File (Binary)
  Value:       {{ $binary.data }}

Response Format:  File (Binary)

Example Workflows

Ready-to-Import n8n Workflow

Copy the JSON below and import it into n8n via Workflow → Import from JSON. This creates a simple webhook-triggered metadata removal workflow.

{
  "name": "MetaScrub Metadata Remover",
  "nodes": [
    {
      "parameters": {
        "httpMethod": "POST",
        "path": "clean-metadata",
        "options": {
          "rawBody": true
        }
      },
      "name": "Webhook",
      "type": "n8n-nodes-base.webhook",
      "typeVersion": 1,
      "position": [250, 300]
    },
    {
      "parameters": {
        "method": "POST",
        "url": "https://metascrub.xyz/api/v1/remove-metadata",
        "sendHeaders": true,
        "headerParameters": {
          "parameters": [
            {
              "name": "X-API-Key",
              "value": "ms_your_api_key_here"
            }
          ]
        },
        "sendBody": true,
        "contentType": "multipart-form-data",
        "bodyParameters": {
          "parameters": [
            {
              "parameterType": "formBinaryData",
              "name": "file",
              "inputDataFieldName": "data"
            }
          ]
        },
        "options": {
          "response": {
            "response": {
              "responseFormat": "file"
            }
          }
        }
      },
      "name": "MetaScrub API",
      "type": "n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest",
      "typeVersion": 4,
      "position": [500, 300]
    },
    {
      "parameters": {
        "respondWith": "binary"
      },
      "name": "Respond to Webhook",
      "type": "n8n-nodes-base.respondToWebhook",
      "typeVersion": 1,
      "position": [750, 300]
    }
  ],
  "connections": {
    "Webhook": {
      "main": [
        [{"node": "MetaScrub API", "type": "main", "index": 0}]
      ]
    },
    "MetaScrub API": {
      "main": [
        [{"node": "Respond to Webhook", "type": "main", "index": 0}]
      ]
    }
  }
}

MetaScrub API Quick Reference

For full API documentation with code examples in Python, JavaScript, cURL and PowerShell, see the API Documentation page.

Frequently Asked Questions