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So Instagram has photos I don't click "upload" on. Well that's nice to know. Edit: So I tried to use a proxy on my phone but it looks like Instragram on Androi

So Instagram has photos I don't click "upload" on. Well that's nice to know. Edit: So I tried to use a proxy on my phone but it looks like Instragram on Android doesn't honour the wireless proxy server. Anyone else want to do some digging?

yashg 15y ago
If you don't select upload then they can either stop the process if the photo hasn't been uploaded yet OR if its complete then they can send a signal and delete a photo. But yeah its waste of bandwidth for the user if he decides against uploading the photo.
simonw 15y ago
I imagine they start uploading when you click the greet "tick" button.
- NathanKP 15y ago
  Exactly. All this outrage about photos being uploaded without permission is overblown, because tapping the green check button is just the same as clicking a submit button. Instagram just separates the upload process from the process for setting the photo's metadata, which is very intelligent and more efficient.
  - skeletonjelly 15y ago
    It isn't submit it's "upload". And it is only overblown outrage now that we know the facts right?
avbor 15y ago
On slide 89 it mentions that they delete the data if the user cancels it.
- TazeTSchnitzel 15y ago
  And of course they do. They respect user choice and privacy. Whilst you can be all tin-foil hat and think they are going to keep these "cancelled" photos, I would seriously doubt it.
  - skeletonjelly 15y ago
    People also doubted that Facebook retained deleted profiles a number of years ago. Is this an unhealthy opinion to form in an age of growing "cloud" data?
- huhtenberg 15y ago
  Do they also delete photos from a backend database backup that might've occurred after the upload but before the user cancelled the photo?
  - sghael 15y ago
    The photo isn't store in a database. It's stored on S3. They are not backing up S3, so this concern is misplaced.
- moron 15y ago
  Ha, I love the HN reaction to this. Sperging out about Instagram getting photos they're "not supposed to", fake outrage about fake privacy breaches, all while blatantly ignoring this fact. And of course, I'm sure all this fake outrage has nothing to do with Instagram's recent purchase by Facebook.
pjscott 15y ago
The easy technical workaround would be to pre-send the photos encrypted with a random key, and only send the key after you explicitly click "upload". At least that way you could verify with a proxy that they were, in fact, not seeing photos you haven't sent them the keys for.
- gizzlon 15y ago
  Good idea.. they should do this.. Maybe the encryption is too "heavy" for mobile phones? (uses too much battery ore whatever) ?
  - Arelius 15y ago
    Or maybe it's just extra work and complexity that so few of their users actually care about.

yashg 15y ago

If you don't select upload then they can either stop the process if the photo hasn't been uploaded yet OR if its complete then they can send a signal and delete a photo. But yeah its waste of bandwidth for the user if he decides against uploading the photo.

simonw 15y ago

I imagine they start uploading when you click the greet "tick" button.

NathanKP 15y ago
Exactly. All this outrage about photos being uploaded without permission is overblown, because tapping the green check button is just the same as clicking a submit button. Instagram just separates the upload process from the process for setting the photo's metadata, which is very intelligent and more efficient.
- skeletonjelly 15y ago
  It isn't submit it's "upload". And it is only overblown outrage now that we know the facts right?

avbor 15y ago

On slide 89 it mentions that they delete the data if the user cancels it.

TazeTSchnitzel 15y ago
And of course they do. They respect user choice and privacy. Whilst you can be all tin-foil hat and think they are going to keep these "cancelled" photos, I would seriously doubt it.
- skeletonjelly 15y ago
  People also doubted that Facebook retained deleted profiles a number of years ago. Is this an unhealthy opinion to form in an age of growing "cloud" data?
huhtenberg 15y ago
Do they also delete photos from a backend database backup that might've occurred after the upload but before the user cancelled the photo?
- sghael 15y ago
  The photo isn't store in a database. It's stored on S3. They are not backing up S3, so this concern is misplaced.
moron 15y ago
Ha, I love the HN reaction to this. Sperging out about Instagram getting photos they're "not supposed to", fake outrage about fake privacy breaches, all while blatantly ignoring this fact. And of course, I'm sure all this fake outrage has nothing to do with Instagram's recent purchase by Facebook.

pjscott 15y ago

The easy technical workaround would be to pre-send the photos encrypted with a random key, and only send the key after you explicitly click "upload". At least that way you could verify with a proxy that they were, in fact, not seeing photos you haven't sent them the keys for.

gizzlon 15y ago
Good idea.. they should do this.. Maybe the encryption is too "heavy" for mobile phones? (uses too much battery ore whatever) ?
- Arelius 15y ago
  Or maybe it's just extra work and complexity that so few of their users actually care about.