Messages bug deleting saved photos in iOS 15

Iphone 12 Pro Ios 15 Messages Photo Stack
Iphone 12 Pro Ios 15 Messages Photo Stack (Image credit: Christine Romero-Chan / iMore)

What you need to know

  • A bug in iOS 15 is deleting photos from people's libraries.
  • It happens when you save a photo from a thread in Messages.
  • Deleting that thread and then performing a backup to iCloud seems to delete the photos.

A worrisome bug in iOS 15 appears to be deleting user's photo from their libraries if they delete the thread the photo was saved from in Messages.

MacRumors reports:

A serious bug in the iOS 15 Messages app can cause some saved photos to be deleted, according to multiple complaints we've heard from MacRumors readers and Twitter users.

According to the report, if you receive a photo in messages and then save it to your photo library, deleting the thread it came from will lead to the photo disappearing if you back your phone up to iCloud. The photos remain in your iCloud Photo Library when the thread is deleted, however, they appear to then disppear once you perform an iCloud backup.

Most iCloud backups happen automatically so this could happen without warning. This is likely a software bug that can be fixed by Apple in a future update, however the obvious solution in the meantime is to ensure you don't delete any threads in Messages if you think there's a risk you might lose photos you've saved.

https://twitter.com/superezfe/status/1443196471160066050?F

Apple added some new photo features to iOS 15 for Apple's best iPhones such as the iPhone 13, such as using Live Text to recognize text in photos and using Spotlight to search photos by location and more. Apple also updated Memories with a new interface and features.

Stephen Warwick
News Editor

Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.

Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwarwick9