Technical comparison

What each tool actually produces.

No marketing fluff — just the technical artefacts and legal frameworks compared side-by-side across the 5 most-used web evidence tools.

Recommended

GetProofAnchor

18 18

Native features

Pagefreezer

6 18

Native features

Page Vault

5 18

Native features

Wayback

2 18

Native features

Notary

8 18

Native features

Native / full support

Partial / conditional

Not supported

Feature / standard	Enterprise Pagefreezer	US legal Page Vault	Public archive Wayback	Traditional Notary
▸ Capture artefacts (what's inside the evidence package)
SHA-256 hash per file Cryptographic fingerprint to detect tampering
Visible screenshot (PNG, full page) Rendered view as the user saw it
Full-page video (MP4 scroll-through) Continuous proof of dynamic content		~
HTML snapshot (rendered source) Original HTML as served by the website
DOM snapshot (post-JS state) Final DOM after JavaScript has run			~
HAR file (network log) Every HTTP request/response with timing
Original HTTP headers + TLS chain Server identity proof and connection metadata		~
▸ Cryptographic chain of custody
RFC 3161 timestamp IETF standard time-stamp token (PKI-based)	~	~
eIDAS Art. 42 qualified timestamp EU-accredited QTSP, legal presumption of accuracy
Bitcoin OpenTimestamps anchor Independent public ledger, no vendor dependency
Signed manifest (chain of custody) Cryptographically signed JSON inventory	~	~
Independent open-source verifier Anyone can verify without vendor cooperation				~
▸ Legal frameworks & compliance
ISO/IEC 27037 — forensic acquisition International digital evidence standard	~	~
eIDAS Reg. 910/2014 — EU recognition Art. 41 admissibility across all EU states
GDPR Art. 5(1)(f) — integrity Tamper-evidence requirement for personal data		~
DSA Art. 16 — notice & action Substantiation of illegal content reports	~	~
AI Act Art. 50 — synthetic disclosure Transparency evidence for AI-generated content				~
FRE 901(b)(9) — US authentication US Federal Rules of Evidence admissibility			~

18 criteria, 5 tools

Every row is an objectively testable property. Where we marked an item “partial”, the feature exists but with caveats (e.g. proprietary timestamps, no Bitcoin anchor).

Recommended

Our solution

GetProofAnchor

18 18

▸ Capture artefacts (what's inside the evidence package)

SHA-256 hash per file

Visible screenshot (PNG, full page)

Full-page video (MP4 scroll-through)

HTML snapshot (rendered source)

DOM snapshot (post-JS state)

HAR file (network log)

Original HTTP headers + TLS chain

▸ Cryptographic chain of custody

RFC 3161 timestamp

eIDAS Art. 42 qualified timestamp

Bitcoin OpenTimestamps anchor

Signed manifest (chain of custody)

Independent open-source verifier

▸ Legal frameworks & compliance

ISO/IEC 27037 — forensic acquisition

eIDAS Reg. 910/2014 — EU recognition

GDPR Art. 5(1)(f) — integrity

DSA Art. 16 — notice & action

AI Act Art. 50 — synthetic disclosure

FRE 901(b)(9) — US authentication

Enterprise

Pagefreezer

6 18

▸ Capture artefacts (what's inside the evidence package)

SHA-256 hash per file

Visible screenshot (PNG, full page)

Full-page video (MP4 scroll-through)

HTML snapshot (rendered source)

DOM snapshot (post-JS state)

HAR file (network log)

Original HTTP headers + TLS chain

▸ Cryptographic chain of custody

~ RFC 3161 timestamp

eIDAS Art. 42 qualified timestamp

Bitcoin OpenTimestamps anchor

~ Signed manifest (chain of custody)

Independent open-source verifier

▸ Legal frameworks & compliance

~ ISO/IEC 27037 — forensic acquisition

eIDAS Reg. 910/2014 — EU recognition

GDPR Art. 5(1)(f) — integrity

~ DSA Art. 16 — notice & action

AI Act Art. 50 — synthetic disclosure

FRE 901(b)(9) — US authentication

US legal

Page Vault

5 18

▸ Capture artefacts (what's inside the evidence package)

SHA-256 hash per file

Visible screenshot (PNG, full page)

~ Full-page video (MP4 scroll-through)

HTML snapshot (rendered source)

DOM snapshot (post-JS state)

HAR file (network log)

~ Original HTTP headers + TLS chain

▸ Cryptographic chain of custody

~ RFC 3161 timestamp

eIDAS Art. 42 qualified timestamp

Bitcoin OpenTimestamps anchor

~ Signed manifest (chain of custody)

Independent open-source verifier

▸ Legal frameworks & compliance

~ ISO/IEC 27037 — forensic acquisition

eIDAS Reg. 910/2014 — EU recognition

~ GDPR Art. 5(1)(f) — integrity

~ DSA Art. 16 — notice & action

AI Act Art. 50 — synthetic disclosure

FRE 901(b)(9) — US authentication

Public archive

Wayback

2 18

▸ Capture artefacts (what's inside the evidence package)

SHA-256 hash per file

Visible screenshot (PNG, full page)

Full-page video (MP4 scroll-through)

HTML snapshot (rendered source)

~ DOM snapshot (post-JS state)

HAR file (network log)

Original HTTP headers + TLS chain

▸ Cryptographic chain of custody

RFC 3161 timestamp

eIDAS Art. 42 qualified timestamp

Bitcoin OpenTimestamps anchor

Signed manifest (chain of custody)

Independent open-source verifier

▸ Legal frameworks & compliance

ISO/IEC 27037 — forensic acquisition

eIDAS Reg. 910/2014 — EU recognition

GDPR Art. 5(1)(f) — integrity

DSA Art. 16 — notice & action

AI Act Art. 50 — synthetic disclosure

~ FRE 901(b)(9) — US authentication

Traditional

Notary

8 18

▸ Capture artefacts (what's inside the evidence package)

SHA-256 hash per file

Visible screenshot (PNG, full page)

Full-page video (MP4 scroll-through)

HTML snapshot (rendered source)

DOM snapshot (post-JS state)

HAR file (network log)

Original HTTP headers + TLS chain

▸ Cryptographic chain of custody

RFC 3161 timestamp

eIDAS Art. 42 qualified timestamp

Bitcoin OpenTimestamps anchor

Signed manifest (chain of custody)

~ Independent open-source verifier

▸ Legal frameworks & compliance

ISO/IEC 27037 — forensic acquisition

eIDAS Reg. 910/2014 — EU recognition

GDPR Art. 5(1)(f) — integrity

DSA Art. 16 — notice & action

~ AI Act Art. 50 — synthetic disclosure

FRE 901(b)(9) — US authentication

Honest disclaimer: This matrix reflects each vendor's publicly documented features as of May 2026. Where we marked an item “partial”, the feature exists but with caveats (e.g. Pagefreezer offers SHA-256 but uses proprietary timestamps; Page Vault has digital signatures but no Bitcoin anchor). Pagefreezer wins decisively on continuous compliance archiving for large regulated organisations — that's not our market. Page Vault wins on US courtroom affidavit workflows. Wayback is excellent as a free public archive for historical research. A notary remains the highest single-jurisdiction assurance when speed and cost don't matter.

Try for yourself what evidence that outlives its vendor looks like

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Comparison FAQ

How GetProofAnchor differs from other web evidence tools.

How does GetProofAnchor compare to Pagefreezer?

Pagefreezer is strong at continuous compliance archiving for large regulated organisations and offers SHA-256 hashing, but it relies on proprietary timestamps. GetProofAnchor is built for on-demand, court-ready capture of individual pages with eIDAS-qualified timestamps recognised across the EU and an independent Bitcoin OpenTimestamps anchor, so proofs remain verifiable even if our company disappears.

How does GetProofAnchor compare to Page Vault?

Page Vault is well suited to US courtroom affidavit workflows. GetProofAnchor targets the EU market with eIDAS Article 42 qualified timestamps that carry a legal presumption across all EU and EEA member states, plus a Bitcoin anchor and an open-source verifier (gpa-verify) that lets any third party confirm integrity offline without our involvement.

Is GetProofAnchor better than the Wayback Machine for evidence?

The Wayback Machine is an excellent free public archive for historical research, but it is not designed as forensic evidence: it has no qualified timestamp, no chain of custody, and no cryptographic integrity guarantee you control. GetProofAnchor produces a sealed Evidence ZIP with SHA-256 manifest, hash chain, eIDAS timestamp, and Bitcoin anchor built specifically to withstand challenge in legal and regulatory proceedings.

Why not just use a notary?

A notarial deed remains the highest single-jurisdiction assurance when speed and cost are not concerns. GetProofAnchor is faster and cheaper, available 24/7 on demand, and produces evidence recognised across the EU/EEA rather than a single jurisdiction while still being independently verifiable by a court-appointed expert.

What makes GetProofAnchor's verification vendor-independent?

Every Evidence ZIP can be verified with the open-source gpa-verify tool (on GitHub and PyPI) or any standard RFC 3161 validator. Verification runs fully offline and contacts no GetProofAnchor servers. Because the hash is anchored to the Bitcoin blockchain and the timestamp is issued by an EU-accredited Trust Service Provider, the proof stays verifiable indefinitely, independent of our company.