Deleted iPhone Photos Returned to Some iOS Devices: Here's Why!

Explanation for the Return of Deleted iPhone Photos to Some iOS Devices

Some iOS devices experienced the reappearance of deleted iPhone photos.

Explanation for the Resurfacing of Deleted iPhone Photos on iOS 17.5 Devices

Apple and third-party researchers have provided insights into why devices running iOS 17.5 began displaying long-deleted photos. While Apple addressed the issue with the release of the iOS 17.5.1 iPhone update earlier this week, attributing it to a "database corruption," the company did not disclose the specific cause of old files, including deleted images, reappearing on devices where they were never stored.

According to Apple's explanation to 9to5Mac, the issue stemmed from a corrupt database entry within the device's file system, affecting files stored locally on the device rather than those synced to iCloud. These files may have been transferred from older devices during restoration from a backup or device-to-device transfer.

Contradictory Claims Regarding iOS 17.5 Bug

A Reddit user previously alleged in a now-deleted post that the iOS 17.5 bug caused resurfacing of photos on an iPad that had been wiped and sold to a friend. However, Apple refutes this claim, stating to 9to5Mac that such an occurrence is not possible. According to Apple, all files and content are permanently deleted once a device's data has been completely erased. Essentially, Apple suggests that the user either did not follow the correct device reset procedure or fabricated the claim for attention on Reddit.

The company also clarified that only a small number of individuals were affected by the database issue. Additionally, Apple emphasized that it does not have access to photo or video files stored on users' phones.

Paraphrased Analysis of iOS 17.5.1 Update by Synactiv

Security experts at Synactiv also investigated the problem by analyzing the iOS 17.5.1 update designed to address it. A comprehensive explanation is available in their complete report, but in essence, iOS 17.5 introduced a process to scan and re-import photos from the file system. Apple removed this process in their recent update because it caused old files to reappear in photo galleries due to re-indexing on the local file system.

Synacktiv stated, "According to this code, we can infer that the reappearance of photos was due to them still existing on the file systems and being detected by the migration process introduced in iOS 17.5." They added, "Based solely on this analysis, it's unclear how the photos persisted on the file system initially." The Synacktiv article then refers readers to a Reddit comment for a potential explanation, suggesting that users might have saved images in both the File app and the Photos app, deleting only the latter.