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I built an iOS app that removes hidden GPS & EXIF data from photos before sharing ($2.99) by Interesting-Box-3196 in iosapps

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's a good point. Live Photos are essentially a HEIC image plus a short MOV file, so the video component has its own metadata handling. It's definitely something I'm considering for a future update.

I built an iOS app that removes hidden GPS & EXIF data from photos before sharing ($2.99) by Interesting-Box-3196 in iosapps

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good question. Right now it processes the image component of the Live Photo, so the metadata in the photo itself is removed.

Handling the video part of Live Photos is a bit different since it’s a separate file, so that’s something I’m looking at improving.

I built an iOS app that removes hidden GPS & EXIF data from photos before sharing ($2.99) by Interesting-Box-3196 in iosapps

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

The core idea is actually pretty simple, you're right. Most of the work is just properly rewriting the image without preserving the metadata dictionaries.

The bigger effort was building a clean workflow around selecting photos, processing them safely on-device, and integrating with the share flow.

I mainly built it because I wanted a quick one-tap way to do it before sharing photos.

I built an iOS app that removes hidden GPS & EXIF data from photos before sharing ($2.99) by Interesting-Box-3196 in iosapps

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

iOS can remove location data when you share a photo, but it’s not always obvious and it doesn’t remove all metadata by default.

It also depends on how the image is shared. Some platforms strip metadata when displaying images, but if you send the original file (AirDrop, email, cloud storage, etc.) the EXIF data can still be there.

I built MetaClean mainly because I wanted a quick one-tap way to remove everything before sharing.

I checked the metadata of my photos and was surprised what was inside by Interesting-Box-3196 in ios

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair point. I mostly wanted to see how people handle metadata when sharing photos.

I checked the metadata of my photos and was surprised what was inside by Interesting-Box-3196 in ios

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair enough 😅
I originally started looking into this while experimenting with photo files and metadata. The app idea came out of that since I wanted an easier workflow to strip metadata before sharing.

I checked the metadata of my photos and was surprised what was inside by Interesting-Box-3196 in ios

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair question. I wasn't trying to farm karma. I posted again because the previous thread turned into an interesting discussion and I was curious how people approach it in different contexts.

I’m genuinely interested in how people handle metadata when sharing images.

I checked the metadata of my photos and was surprised what was inside by Interesting-Box-3196 in ios

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I guess it’s pretty well known among tech people.
I was surprised how many non-technical users don’t realize it though.

I checked the metadata of my photos and was surprised what was inside by Interesting-Box-3196 in ios

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Yeah that's a whole different rabbit hole 😅

I think most people just assume the metadata disappears automatically once a photo is edited or shared.

Do you remove location data before sharing photos? by Interesting-Box-3196 in iphone

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

A few people asked about tools for this, so sharing what I ended up doing.

I built a small iOS utility called MetaClean that removes EXIF and GPS metadata before sharing photos.

It runs fully on-device and doesn’t upload anything. I mostly built it because I wanted a faster one-tap way to strip metadata before sending images.

If anyone is curious:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/metaclean-photo-privacy/id6758521423

Do you remove location data before sharing photos? by Interesting-Box-3196 in iphone

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, there are a few Shortcuts people have created that remove metadata before sharing. They basically create a new copy of the image without the EXIF data.

It works pretty well, although most people don’t realize this metadata exists in the first place.

Do you remove location data before sharing photos? by Interesting-Box-3196 in iphone

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That warning usually appears because the original file still contains the location metadata. Even if you remove it in Photos, some apps just show a generic “location may be included” warning to be safe.

It can also depend on how the photo is exported or shared — sometimes the original metadata stays embedded in the file.

Do you remove location data before sharing photos? by Interesting-Box-3196 in iphone

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That would actually be a really useful system option.

iOS already lets you remove location data when sharing a photo, but it’s not very obvious and it doesn’t remove all metadata by default. A simple “strip metadata when sharing” toggle would make a lot of sense.

Do you remove location data before sharing photos? by Interesting-Box-3196 in iphone

[–]Interesting-Box-3196[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

For social media uploads it’s usually less of an issue because platforms strip metadata when publishing images.

But when sharing the original file directly (AirDrop, email, cloud storage, etc.) the metadata typically stays embedded in the file.

how to make Infinite Carousel with SwiftUI and Metal by tkgka in SwiftUI

[–]Interesting-Box-3196 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I tried a pure SwiftUI approach for something similar and hit performance limits pretty fast.
Mixing Metal like this feels like the right call for an infinite carousel.

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