{"id":"image-vnd-sealedmedia-softseal-gif","mimeType":"image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif","name":"SealedMedia SoftSeal GIF","shortName":"SoftSeal-GIF","category":"Security \u0026 DRM","extensions":[".sgif",".sealed-gif"],"description":"The image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif MIME type represents a Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) file encrypted and encapsulated within the proprietary SoftSeal Digital Rights Management (DRM) container developed by SealedMedia. Designed for enterprise Information Rights Management (IRM), this format allowed organizations to securely distribute sensitive images while maintaining centralized control over who could view them, when they could be viewed, and whether they could be copied or printed. SealedMedia was later acquired by Oracle and integrated into the Oracle IRM suite.","seo":{"title":"image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif MIME Type | Developer Reference","description":"Complete reference for the image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif MIME type: SealedMedia SoftSeal DRM, encrypted GIF payloads, and Oracle IRM history.","faqs":[{"question":"What is a SoftSeal GIF?","answer":"A SoftSeal GIF is a standard GIF image that has been cryptographically wrapped by SealedMedia's enterprise DRM software. It requires authentication against a central corporate licensing server before the image can be viewed."},{"question":"How do I open an image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif file?","answer":"You cannot open this file with standard web browsers or image viewers. You must use the Oracle IRM Desktop client (or the legacy SealedMedia Unsealer plugin) and have active, authorized credentials to decrypt the file."},{"question":"What happened to the SealedMedia SoftSeal format?","answer":"SealedMedia was acquired by Oracle Corporation in 2006. The SoftSeal technology was rebranded and absorbed into Oracle Information Rights Management (IRM). The product line has since been largely deprecated, making legacy sealed files difficult to access without the original server infrastructure."}]},"index":{"compression":["Encrypted Payload (LZW)"],"browserSupport":{"score":1,"label":"None"},"commonUses":["Enterprise Information Rights Management (IRM)","Secure Distribution of Corporate Assets","Revocable Medical, Legal, or Financial Imaging"]},"technical":{"magicBytes":{"hex":"Unknown (Proprietary SealedMedia Container)","ascii":"Unknown"},"container":"SealedMedia SoftSeal Wrapper","compressionAlgorithm":["AES Encryption","LZW (Internal GIF payload)"],"colorDepth":["Encrypted Payload (Historically up to 8-bit Indexed)"],"transparency":false,"animation":false,"metadata":{"exif":false,"xmp":false,"iccProfile":false},"alphaChannel":false,"progressiveLoading":false,"hdrSupport":false},"history":{"developer":"SealedMedia (Acquired by Oracle Corporation)","released":"Late 1990s","specification":"Proprietary (Registered with IANA)"},"browserSupport":{"chrome":false,"chromeVersion":"None","firefox":false,"firefoxVersion":"None","safari":false,"safariVersion":"None","edge":false,"edgeVersion":"None","internetExplorer":false},"softwareSupport":[{"name":"Oracle IRM Desktop","logo":""},{"name":"SealedMedia Unsealer (Legacy)","logo":""}],"conversion":{"convertTo":["gif"],"convertFrom":[]},"developer":{"httpHeaders":[{"header":"Content-Type","value":"image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif"}],"htmlAccept":"None","fileDetection":["Standard file sniffers lack magic byte definitions for the proprietary SoftSeal container wrapper.","Identification relies entirely on the HTTP Content-Type headers generated by the DRM distribution server or string matching legacy file extensions."]},"prosCons":{"pros":["Provided robust, persistent security that traveled with the file, ensuring images could not be leaked even if sent outside the corporate firewall","Enabled dynamic revocation, meaning administrators could instantly kill access to a file globally"],"cons":["Completely proprietary and dependent on an active authentication server; if the DRM server dies, the image is permanently locked","Zero support in modern operating systems, web browsers, or standard image editing suites without heavy enterprise client installations","Often caused massive friction for legitimate end-users trying to view documents"]},"specifications":{"url":"https://www.iana.org/assignments/media-types/image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif","rfc":"","mimeAliases":["image/vnd.sealed.gif"]},"developerSnippets":{"python":"import magic\n# Libmagic lacks definitions for the proprietary SoftSeal container. It will likely identify the file as 'application/octet-stream'.\nprint(magic.from_file('secure_image.sgif', mime=True))","nodejs":"const mime = require('mime');\n// Standard JS MIME libraries map this purely based on historical IANA registry associations if the extension is recognized\nconsole.log(mime.getType('secure_image.sgif')); // May output 'image/vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.gif' depending on the dictionary","go":"import \"net/http\"\n// The standard net/http library cannot detect sealed files internally via byte sniffing. You must rely on extension string matching.","php":"$mime = mime_content_type('secure_image.sgif');\necho $mime; // Standard server environments will map this to application/octet-stream"},"relatedFormats":["gif","vnd.sealed.png","vnd.sealedmedia.softseal.jpg"]}