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Google Photos Uploading Your Pics, Even If You Don't Want It To

Posted by timothy on from the that's-not-what-I-asked-for dept.

New submitter Adekyn writes that, according to David A. Arnott of The Business Journals, the Google Photos app will sync your photos — even after you have deleted the application from your device. From the article: All I had to do to turn my phone into a stealth Google Photos uploader was to turn on the backup sync, then uninstall the app. Whereas one might reasonably believe uninstalling the app from the phone would stop photos from uploading automatically to Google Photos, the device still does it even in the app’s absence. Since making this discovery, I have re-created the issue multiple times in multiple settings on my Galaxy S5. I reached out to Google, and after reaching someone on the phone and describing the issue, was told to wait for a comment. Several hours later, I received a terse email that said, “The backup was as intended.” If I want to stop it from happening, I was told I'd have to change settings in Google Play Services. A video of the process accompanies the article.

4 of 217 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Trust by ArcadeMan · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Facebook?

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    Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins
  2. Re: Stop the press. The TV is on even after ... by Barny · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Sure!

    So you have a car. You noticed the oil-warning light is on all the time. You go under the hood and remove the oil-sensor, now you wonder why your engine is screwed.

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    ...
    /me sighs
  3. Re:Google's desire to sell all things by DerekLyons · · Score: 4, Interesting

    We're talking Google here - they certainly are incompetent at a range of things, but when it comes to "accidentally" gathering information, they're very competent indeed.

  4. Re: Stop the press. The TV is on even after ... by thegarbz · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Urgh. Google, knock it off with the "We know better than you do" bullshit. At least make me aware of what Android is actually doing with my stuff.

    Factory reset your phone, then actually READ through the screens you clicked next to.

    Backup and syncing photos and contacts with your google account is about the 4th screen in which you were PROMPTED about when you setup your phone. Don't act all surprised when a feature of the OS it informed you of actually works.

    Seriously, this is the kind of thing that is making me want my next smartphone to run something else. I just don't know what yet.

    Why? You'll only complain about something else when you blindly click accept to every window during the setup process on that device too.