Apple is providing clarification about the controversial photo bug on iOS

Shortly after the launch of iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5, strange scenes occurred: photos that users had long deleted suddenly reappeared in the Photos app. For some this was an innocent mistake, but for others it also involved sensitive or distressing images. The bug was quickly fixed with iOS 17.5.1 and iPadOS 17.5.1. However, Apple has remained unclear about the cause of the flaw, leaving many questions unanswered.

Apple has the opposite on Thursday 9to5Mac Text and explanation provided. According to the manufacturer, the reason lies in a corrupt database on the iPad and iPhone itself. Apple confirms that the recovered photos were not on iCloud, but were still present on the devices themselves.

Pictures from 10 years ago

How could it be that photos and videos were sometimes 10 or more years old? This is about the process of setting up your new iPhone or iPad. Files are copied from the old device, including the database. Apple adds that resetting your iPhone or iPad also clears the corrupt database. Therefore, the future buyer of your device will never be able to get your deleted photos, even after updating to iOS 17.5 or iPadOS 17.5.

Apple has responded to a post on Reddit claiming that old photos appeared on a sold iPad. This iPad was already reset, but the photos were going to come with it anyway. According to Apple, this was a myth. The post has since been removed from Reddit.

Just remove it yourself

The said bug has now been resolved with iOS 17.5.1 and iPadOS 17.5.1. After installing this update, you must manually delete the recovered photos.