Is It possible to permanently Delete Photos on iPhone?

I am having trouble getting rid of old photos on my iPhone. I have tried deleting photos from my Camera Roll, but they keep reappearing whenever I connect my phone to my computer. I want to permanently delete photos so that they are gone for good and don't take up space on my phone.

I am not sure why they keep coming back or how to get rid of them for good. Can anyone help me figure out how to permanently delete photos from iPhone?

Posted on Mar 18, 2024 12:08 AM

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Posted on Mar 18, 2024 12:44 AM

Probably you have synced these Photos from your Mac/PC through iTunes. UN-sync then they would be gone from iPhone.


UN-Sync photos to your device

  1. Connect your device to your Mac.
  2. You can connect your device using a USB or USB-C cable or using a Wi-Fi connection. To turn on Wi-Fi syncing, see Sync content between your Mac and iPhone or iPad over Wi-Fi.
  3. In the Finder  on your Mac, select the device in the Finder sidebar.
  4. Select Photos in the button bar.
  5. Note: When iCloud Photos is turned on, no photo syncing options appear when you select Photos in the button bar.
  6. Select “Sync Photos to your device from” tickbox, then choose Photos, Pictures or a folder from the pop-up menu.
  7. Uncheck Sync photos
  8. Click on Apply / Sync



6 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Mar 18, 2024 12:44 AM in response to Genopikke

Probably you have synced these Photos from your Mac/PC through iTunes. UN-sync then they would be gone from iPhone.


UN-Sync photos to your device

  1. Connect your device to your Mac.
  2. You can connect your device using a USB or USB-C cable or using a Wi-Fi connection. To turn on Wi-Fi syncing, see Sync content between your Mac and iPhone or iPad over Wi-Fi.
  3. In the Finder  on your Mac, select the device in the Finder sidebar.
  4. Select Photos in the button bar.
  5. Note: When iCloud Photos is turned on, no photo syncing options appear when you select Photos in the button bar.
  6. Select “Sync Photos to your device from” tickbox, then choose Photos, Pictures or a folder from the pop-up menu.
  7. Uncheck Sync photos
  8. Click on Apply / Sync



Mar 26, 2024 1:44 AM in response to Genopikke

Yes, it is possible to permanently delete photos on iPhone. The reason some photos keep reappearing is that they may be synced to iCloud or your computer. Here's what you can do to permanently delete photos from iPhone:


1. Open the Photos app on your iPhone.


2. Go to the "Albums" tab and select the album containing the photos you want to delete.


3. Tap "Select" in the top right corner and select the photos you want to delete. You can select multiple photos at once.


4. Once you have selected the photos you want to delete, tap the trash can icon in the bottom right corner.


5. Confirm that you want to delete the photos by tapping "Delete [number] Photos."


6. The deleted photos will be moved to the "Recently Deleted" album, where they will remain for 30 days before being permanently deleted.


7. If you want to permanently delete photos iPhone before the 30-day period is up, go to the "Recently Deleted" album and select the photos you want to permanently delete.


8. Tap "Delete" in the bottom left corner.


9. Confirm that you want to permanently delete the photos by tapping "Delete [number] Photos."


Once you have permanently deleted photos on iPhone, they will no longer be available in your Photo Library or the Recently Deleted album. However, if your photos are automatically syncing to iCloud or other devices, you'll need to turn off iCloud syncing or delete the photos from those devices as well to ensure they are completely gone.

Mar 18, 2024 2:03 AM in response to Genopikke

Permanently deleting photos from your iPhone can help you manage your storage and keep your device organized. Here’s how to do it:


  1. Open the Photos app.
  2. Go to the Albums tab and tap on the album where your photos are stored, such as the Camera Roll.
  3. Tap Select in the top right corner, then select the photos you want to delete.
  4. Tap the trash can icon in the bottom right corner.
  5. Confirm that you want to delete the selected photos.
  6. Go back to the Albums tab and scroll down to find the Recently Deleted album. Tap to open it.
  7. Tap Select in the top right corner.
  8. To delete all photos, tap Delete All in the bottom left corner.
  9. Confirm the deletion to permanently remove the photos from your iPhone.



Mar 18, 2024 8:17 PM in response to Genopikke

When you delete a photo on an iPhone, it typically goes to the "Recently Deleted" album within the Photos app. This album serves as a temporary storage for deleted photos and videos, giving you a chance to recover them if you've deleted them accidentally or if you change your mind. By default, photos and videos in the "Recently Deleted" album are kept for 30 days before being permanently removed from your device.


During this 30-day period, you have the option to restore the deleted photos back to your main photo library or to delete them permanently. If you delete a photo from the "Recently Deleted" album or if the 30-day window expires, then the photo is indeed permanently removed from your device and cannot be recovered through normal means.


However, it's important to note that if you have an iCloud backup enabled, the deleted photos may still be recoverable from your iCloud backup, depending on when the backup was made and if the photos were included in the backup. Additionally, specialized data recovery software or services may sometimes be able to retrieve deleted photos from iPhones, but this isn't guaranteed and typically requires specific technical knowledge.


To permanently delete photos on iPhone, you should use movies or videos to take up the storage full. This will overwrite the space by deleted photos. You can also use a dedicated software to write random digits to the space.

Mar 26, 2024 2:26 AM in response to Genopikke

If you are syncing photos through iCloud Photos, then normally, deleting the photos on any device is taken as a request to delete them on EVERY device, and from iCloud.


If the photos kept re-appearing in that scenario, it would suggest that something was wrong with syncing or that you had been adding photos back on other connected devices (which would be taken as a request to add photos everywhere).

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Is It possible to permanently Delete Photos on iPhone?

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