It is becoming f*cking dangerous: The Claude Code tool found absolutely every shot that I considered permanently deleted from my iPhone. Data spanning 4 years of photos and videos was continuously stored in a disguised system cache. Every application with permissions to the file system had direct access to... them I synced my smartphone with a MacBook to create a backup. Then I ran the Claude Code vulnerability scan mentioned in my previous post. The scanner unexpectedly flagged a folder that I had not even asked it to check, a system directory named PhotoData/Thumbnails containing over 183,000 items. Pictures, video clips, screenshots, absolutely everything I had gotten rid of Archives for 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Shots I deleted instantly after taking them. Photos for which I manually cleared the Recently Deleted section. Originals that I double checked and erased a second time just to be safe. All of it was still stored there What exactly was found in that cache: A random photo of a recipe from a cookbook from 2023 Screenshots of shopping lists and notes with daily chores Failed takes and blurry landscape shots deleted right during a walk A screenshot of a bus schedule from 2022 captured for just a few seconds Photos of price tags and store labels deleted right at the checkout A saved meme image from social media that I deleted back in 2024 A total of 173,521 files. Some of them in original resolution. Everything neatly sorted chronologically starting from 2021 When you delete media on an iPhone, iOS simply removes it from your gallery and trash. In reality, iOS keeps compressed copies in the Spotlight search index directory. That is precisely how fast keyphrase search works on your phone. Apple never clears this area, not after a month, not after a year. Claims of permanent deletion are simply untrue I decided to check the list of software that has permission to access Files and Folders. It turned out there were 19 of them: weather utilities, QR code scanners, PDF readers, and even an old flashlight app installed in 2021. Any of these applications could freely read the data I considered destroyed all this time I cut down the list of these applications from 19 to 5 in just a couple of clicks The beauty of modern technology is that it allows us to recall what we have long forgottenshow more

wait so a flashlight app from 2021 could read my deleted pics this whole time?? ok now im actually curious, did anyone else check their phone or is this just me being paranoid

In reality, there’s nothing to fear here if you’re an ordinary person I think it’s the politicians and those who possess truly important information who should be worried

This is why digital privacy deserves more attention.

This is truly something that needs to be paid attention to

after this, you look at app permissions differently

Definitely yes

Wow, maybe I'll be able to find some of those lost photos, too

Quite possible, my friend

iOS thumbnail cache never forgets

This is the absolute truth

that's why the internet never forgets

Yessss

must have

True

I had no idea he was capable of that.

He is capable of more than many people think

hacker)

It didn’t really help, so to speak

Revoking unnecessary app permissions is sensible regardless

Yes, there’s something interesting about that

The flashlight app from 2021 is the real villain here

Ohh yes

this post is really about hidden risks of phone privacy, not just a tech glitch

I’m glad you understood everything correctly

this is really insane

Man, the world isn't what it seems to us

imagine everyone with the same tool

This would make people's lives easier

A lot

I don't understand anything but it's very interesting.

Ha-ha-ha, it happens

always thought apple devices were the most secure in the world guess not

Every piece of technology has a vulnerability

Your take on this topic is spot on

please stop, I'm really scared

This is actually terrifying

this is why privacy checks matter

So much for virus scanners

That’s definitely sad news for me. I sold my old phone a few days ago. I hope those people aren’t following you 🫠

The Claude app or tool? And where to get it?

How much space does your phone have? Did you accidentally discover a new file compression tech that allows infinate storage space?

Lol. TIL how file systems work

time to make it clear

如果清空“最近删除”后还留着可恢复的副本，那用户理解的“永久删除”和系统实际做的事就差得太远了。

fifth version of this exact story i've seen this weekend. that cache gets around

this is really getting fkn dangerous

if true, thats a seriously privacy concern

which directory were they in, and what permissions let it read them? finding deleted photos doesn't tell us whether those were originals, thumbnails or cached copies

but iOS throws away the encryption key the second a file is actually deleted. if Claude found 4 years of photos they were never gone, they were thumbnails in a cache the size of a small country and you paid iCloud for them the whole time

This and that recent Samsung tv discovery should teach us awareness. I think someone is trying to crack semantic societal physics... Get ready to feel brainwashed in the future, quite often. Like ok... a form of imprinted mind control. Wee.

this is interesting bro

checking permissions and regular cleanup is a useful habit