Windows caches thumbnails of deleted photos, viral post reveals
A widely shared thread says Windows silently stores thumbnail images of deleted photos in hidden cache files that forensic examiners can recover.
What to know
- Windows stores thumbnails of deleted photos in hidden cache files such as thumbcache_256.db, even after the original files are removed.
- Forensic examiners reportedly access these caches routinely, raising privacy concerns for users who assume deleted photos are gone.
- At least 15 additional similar cache stores exist beyond the main thumbnail database, according to the viral post.
- Guides such as MakeUseOf's have since emerged explaining how to locate and clear these caches.
@Ayzacoder X user who publicized the issueMicrosoft Developer of Windows
How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts
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MakeUseOf publishes guide on clearing Windows thumbnail caches
MakeUseOf's article details how Windows has kept thumbnails of deleted photos for years and provides steps to locate and remove the cached files.
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first by MakeUseOf, 15h ago
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@Ayzacoder reveals Windows retains deleted-photo thumbnails
A viral X post explains that Windows stores thumbnails of every deleted photo in a file called thumbcache_256.db, with 15 more similar cache stores, and that forensic examiners routinely pull this data.
“Windows keeps a thumbnail of every photo you've ever deleted. It sits in a file called thumbcache_256.db, and forensic examiners pull it routinely. There are 15 more stores like it.”
— @Ayzacoder -
Windows keeps a thumbnail of every photo you've ever deleted. It sits in a file called thumbcache_256.db, and forensic examiners pull it routinely. There are 15 more stores like it. Here's how to find them and wipe them:
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