Users report distorted old images on Google photos, tech giant assures fix

Photos are the best way to preserve moments. And, what if one is unable to retrieve old photographs in their true essence? A similar conundrum was faced by several users recently who were shocked to find their old pictures corrupted in Google Photos application.

Over the weekend, several users reported that they found old pictures distorted or corrupted in the Google Photos application. These pictures were as old as five years. Some users reported deep cracks and lines running across the images, while some spotted blurry areas and discolouration.


Tech portal 9to5Google reported that photos saved in Google Photos some years ago were showing up as corrupted. A user shared an image of their dogs with visible lines on it. The photo seemed to look as if it had been edited by a novice. The user claimed that the issue persisted even after downloading the image.

The problem remained in both individual downloads and those accessed via Google Takeout. Essentially, users were unable to fix it unless Google issued a fix to restore the images in their original form.

According to the tech website, Google has reportedly acknowledged the issue by saying that it was aware of the anomaly and that it is rolling out a fix. Based on the recent reports, it seems multiple users have reported the issue with Google Photos.

Earlier this year, Google rolled out a series of features for the Google Photos app including new filters for users to show their true skin tone. On September 15, Google rolled out a new feature to Google Photos called Memories. The new feature enables users to look at pictures from previous years. The biggest highlight of the new update is that it embeds video snippets which the users will be able to select, trim and save. Besides, the new update will give pictures a zoom effect. Google is also adding whistling music to certain video snippets.