Bad news for Samsung phone owners: some devices are randomly sending your camera roll photos to your contacts without permission. As first spotted by Android Central and later covered by Gizmodo, users are complaining about the issue on Reddit and the company’s official forums. One user says his phone sent all his photos to his girlfriend. The messages are being sent through Samsung’s default texting app Samsung Messages. According to reports, the Messages app does not even show users that files have been sent; many just find out after they get a response from the recipient of the random photos sent to them.
A Samsung spokesperson tells The Verge it’s “aware of the reports” and that its technical teams are “looking into it.” The forums indicate that Galaxy S9 and S9+ devices are affected, but may not be the only ones afflicted with the bug. Samsung is encouraging those experiencing this issue to call the company directly at 1-800-SAMSUNG.
Some users are speculating that this issue has to do with the push of RCS messaging updates, including T-Mobile, which is the carrier for at least one of the affected phones. T-Mobile just issued its RCS update this week, starting with the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge. The messaging standard is supposed to make texting look more like chatting in a modern messaging app, complete with read receipts and typing indicators. When reached for comment, a T-Mobile spokesperson told The Verge to “check in with Samsung on this, it’s not a T-Mobile issue.”
For now, Samsung owners can revoke Samsung Message’s permissions to access storage to avoid the bug from sending their files out in the wild.
Update 7/2, 5:08 PM ET: This article initially stated that photos were sent over SMS, but it’s unclear how the photos are being sent. It’s more likely MMS messages or SMS with a link. We have also updated the story with a comment from T-Mobile.
Comments
Bixby is becoming a becoming a bad butler dog
By VoxMediaUser1831837 on 07.02.18 4:50pm
It’ll be a little odd and strange at Thanksgiving this year for sure. but let’s face facts- That’s just the risk you take when signing up to Neville Ray’s network and get the buy-one-get-one-free SameSong.
RCS (Rich Communication Services) is a new form of text messaging that the other carriers (Verizon, Sprint and AT&T) have yet to sign-on and support, probably due to beta test transmissions like these. But that’s never held back, or stopped Neville Ray before.
By JaniceWilliams on 07.04.18 12:37am
Looks like people’s texts are blowing up!
By Spart325 on 07.02.18 5:07pm
Well there’s a new meaning to TouchWiz.
By TheVergeUrge on 07.02.18 5:19pm
Nice bug. Sounds like a malware writer’s dream.
By Polarbear001 on 07.02.18 5:30pm
It was an unfortunate code regression that starting sending them to random contacts instead of Samsung directly. We were never supposed to know.
By quicktek on 07.02.18 6:11pm
Maybe it only sends to contacts named Sam, Sammy, Samantha, Samir, etc.
By quicktek on 07.02.18 6:16pm
That’s almost worse than exploding phones.
By damodon on 07.02.18 6:34pm
No no no – that’s much better than exploding, catching fire, and burning down anything or anyone in the vicinity. It proves that Samsung is improving by eaps and bounds, every year, and is now somuch more advanced than Apple that I’m going to go right out and dump my iPhone for a brand new Galaxy – or at least the next one they release three weeks from now – just as soon as Samsung runs their next ad campaign telling me what to do, when, and why.
By Omnicog on 07.02.18 7:55pm
Did you seriously just dis Samsung for advertising? The rest is just fanboy crap but complaining about advertising? Your beloved Apple runs ads too, you know, and all you people love those.
By arobsite on 07.02.18 8:51pm
They are both just mobile ARM based SOC’s running a unix-like OS mainly used for communication purposes. I don’t see why everyone gets so worked up over a glorified mini computer in their pocket. Just pick what you can afford, what features you like, complain to the OEM about any device issues, and then use your now extra time to study a skill or find ways to make extra income. I swear I’m not a troll.
By WootyB on 07.02.18 9:05pm
Yeah, but appaently this is either a feature of T-Mobile’s network who is delivering the messages, RCS (Rich Communication Services) software on the phone, or perhaps some rogue application.
So this RCS software is supposed to be the end-all-be-all liberalized, open-source version of Apple’s iMessage service launched way back on June 6, 2011. But the main problem of course, is that it’s software whose functionality is once again being determined by the carriers.
Problems like these are often described and pushed forwared into the press because T-Mobile found a problem and needs the receiving carrier to send the appropriate acknowledgement (or "no-acknowledgement") code back. So they put in in the press; also hoping that there won’t be any legal action or lawsuits.
By JaniceWilliams on 07.04.18 12:53am
Caught one!
By Omnicog on 07.02.18 9:35pm
Sounds like the pot calling the kettle a fanboy.
By agent_albino on 07.03.18 9:47am
Nothing as charged as that. Rather, a simple business decison: company A prioritizes hiring software developers to write solid code, company B prioritizes hiring sophists to post misleading comments.
By Omnicog on 07.03.18 5:50pm
I think I’d rather have my house burn down than certain pictures being sent to inappropriate recipients without my knowledge.
By adamrnope on 07.03.18 12:35pm
Judging from previous posts here, daring to acknowledge the reality of hard facts such as a) exploding phones and b) unauthorized distribution of private content, marks one as a fanboy. Meantime, the fanboys such as WootyB have the chutzpah to completely ignore these facts (which are indeed the topic of this article, are they not?) and focus instead on alleged similarities between the devices in question. Yes, they are identical devices, with the same hardware and software… except that one device explodes and sends your private content god knows where, and one device doesn’t.
By Omnicog on 07.03.18 5:22pm
that’s "hold my beer" shit right there.
By JesseDegenerate on 07.03.18 8:18am
Wow. Fail.
By chadsmo on 07.02.18 7:06pm
I see no possible way this can end hilariously badly
By VandyImport on 07.02.18 7:08pm
I am afraid. I don’t want to find out who I might know has a Samsung phone. Somethings you can never unsee.
By MorbidGod on 07.02.18 8:14pm
r/samsungnudes ???
This could end in spectacularly awful fashion.
By BulletTooth_Tony on 07.02.18 8:27pm
This is why I wish Samsung didn’t lock the phone’s bootloader. I’d install stock android in a heartbeat.
By Josh Reynolds on 07.02.18 9:12pm
why? Samsung’s software is no slower than vanilla Android and is generally at least a generation ahead with regards to features (Samsung’s Oreo phones already have most of the improvements that Google is introducing in Android P)
By hoggleboggle on 07.03.18 9:17am
Why? Because Josh doesn’t want his phone to randomly send his camera role to someone in his contact list. It’s right there in the article if you are confused.
By ench on 07.03.18 11:35am