Apple has finally patched out the "rare" bug in iOS and iPadOS 17.5 causing old deleted images to resurface seemingly out of nowhere.
First reported by 9to5Mac, the update will resolve the issue "where photos that experienced database corruption" could potentially reappear in the Photos library even after being deleted.
Apple did not provide much information about the actual cause of the issue, although some technical experts have provided educated guesses as to why the glitch happened in the first place.
According to Reddit user u/_tysen, the issue is not a backdoor problem in the iCloud and iPhones but rather an error causing an image to be deleted in the "Photos" app but not in the "Files" app.
The glitch is allegedly causing the iPhone to initiate a "re-indexing process" to re-save and re-catalog all "Files" data into their respective apps, including the saved copy of previously thought deleted images.
Regarding the iOS 17.5 Photo Glitch;
byu/_tysen inios
Earlier speculations have pointed to a potential data breach in Apple's iOS and iPadOS systems as most of the pictures that have resurfaced came from the iCloud system.
The explanation, however, did not provide much clarity on cases of deleted photos from old devices appearing on new phones or even after a factory reset.
Several posts on the iOS subreddit pointed out seeing old images from their "bricked" phones and even a Watch Series 2.
Photos bug in devices? Old devices being added back. byu/Swimming-Tax-6087 inios
How to Install Apple iOS 17.5 Glitch Fix?
To install the latest patch, iPhone and iPad users simply need to go to their settings and open General, then Software Update to look for available patches ready to be downloaded.
Users will then only need to download and install the update, reboot the device, and check if the update is completed.
Once done, the update will automatically fix the picture bug, although users may still need to manually delete the old photos again.
iOS 17.5 Glitch Looms Over Apple's Upcoming 2024 WWDC
While the incident has not been reported to cause any severe impacts to affected users, the bug may haunt people's confidence in the tech giant in keeping their customers safe, especially with Apple remaining silent on the issue.
One of the keynotes Apple will address in the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference is the steps it has taken to improve user security across the Apple ecosystem.
Multiple experts have previously come forward criticizing Apple for its exclusive services that only put customers further at risk of cyberattacks and data leaks.
Apple has yet to comment on these criticisms.
