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Forum Discussion
Photographs that are NOT mine in Dropbox - and NOT as a result of using a shared computer!
Hello,
I have discovered a folder in my Dropbox entitled 'Camera Uploads' which is full of hundreds of photos and videos that are not mine. The files are dated from August 2012-November 2013 (which by coincidence is likely to be around about the same time that I set up my Dropbox account). I have not had reason to look in the folder before as I thought it was simply a default folder that Dropbox created on signup.
At first I thought perhaps the folder had been shared with me accidentally but it turns out it is not a shared folder and Dropbox is telling me that the files were uploaded 'by you' (i.e. me!).
Having searched the Dropbox community threads and Google I found someone who had a similar issue and one of the possible reasons given in the thread was that perhaps the user had used a shared computer in the past and left themselves signed into Dropbox and then someone else's phone photos were auto-backed up when they connected. I do not believe this to be the case for me. The reason being is that I looked through all the photos and videos to try to decipher if I knew the owner. I did not. However, one of the photos displayed a gig ticket stub which displayed the surname of the person who bought it - and lo and behold it happens to match my surname. This all seems to point to a scenario where someone with the same name as me was somehow able to sign in to my account and use it to back up their files. Can anyone (at Dropbox or otherwise) explain how this could possibly have happened?
This is surely a security issue. The reason I was poking around in the folders is because I was preparing to start using Dropbox for my business needs but this issue has alarmed me and I now have strong doubts about the security of Dropbox, especially for sharing/storing confidential business files.
BTW I have now changed my password and I was tempted to delete the folder but I feel kind of bad that I now have someone's personal photos (pics and videos of their kids in the school play etc.). I have tried to get in touch with someone at Dropbox but I currently have the basic free account and my options are limited to a chatbot or this forum (another turnoff - I hate when companies make it impossible to contact them!).
Hoping you can help!
Thanks,
Nat
57 Replies
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Yes, please.
- Hannah
Dropbox Community Moderator
Hey Natmonster, we really appreciate your feedback here.
Can we send you an email, so we can look into this internally?
Thanks for your reply but I'm sorry to say that I find the response unsatisfactory.
If I accept that you can't confirm what happened (really, no investigation?) then I at least expect an answer to my question of what events would trigger a 'complete Dropbox setup' email to be sent to me. It's a simple question and if your developers can't answer it then Dropbox users should be very worried indeed.- Megan
Hi Natmonster, thanks for sharing more info here.
While we can't confirm what happened, since you don't see any unauthorized activities, or logins you should be good to go.
The best thing you can do is keep an eye on it, and if that happens again, let us know!
Yes thanks Hannah, I already checked the security section. There isn't anything untoward there, I recognise all the activity as my own.
To clarify, I haven't reached out to the Dropbox team about emails, they reached out to me to discuss the problem for which I started this thread. But I believe them to be connected. Somehow other people's accounts are getting connected to mine in error (perhaps repeatedly). I maintain that the evidence points to a bug in Dropbox's system. Dropbox apparently disagrees but has repeatedly fail to provide an explanation. Instead Dropboxers offer to look into the problem for me and then they go quiet. I believe you yourself responded to me in November last year. Here are some previous ticket numbers #19660429 and #15856784.
Reasons I believe there is a bug in the Dropbox system which allows accounts to be cross connected:
1. My Dropbox was filled up with photos and videos belonging to someone with the same surname - unrelated and unknown to me (reported in 2021)
2. Dropbox emailed me on 4th May 2023 instructing me to complete the set-up on my Dropbox account. The setup of MY account was completed years ago, my account is active.I agree that the 'complete Dropbox setup' email was sent to me by mistake. What events trigger that action from Dropbox?
- Hannah
Hey Natmonster, this might actually have been sent by mistake, but I suggest you take a look at your security page here, for any unknown connected devices or web sessions, to be sure.
You also mentioned that you reached out to our team about those emails; do you happen to have the ticket numbers from those communications?
To date, almost 1.5 years later, I have still not received an explanation as to how this error has occurred. I receive several pledges to investigate the problem further and then hear nothing until the next time I'm promised someone at Dropbox will look into it. Disappointing. Anyway, that's not why I'm posting today...
Yesterday, I received an email from Dropbox recommending that I complete my Dropbox setup ASAP and telling me how easy it is to do. Very strange considering that I've had an active account for years. In fact, it's full to capacity because of aforementioned photos clogging it up.
Is this perhaps another case of someone else's Dropbox account being inadvertently connected to mine? I would be keen to know how and why I have received this email.- Walter
Hey angellsmith, sorry to hear you're having issues with this.
Have you tried checking the version history of these files to see where they might be coming from? Do you see any signs of them in the events page?
I have the same problem. It's going to take hours to delete all these files!
Is it possible they're coming from web pages I've been on momentarily, or perhaps from a web design process? Many of the images look like design elements.
I did have a really old password and just changed it, deleted old devices and apps. I'm not sure what else to check.I did have my personal Dropbox account connected to a work Dropbox account, but considering I worked for a Fortune 100 global tech company, I'd hope their security policies would be stringent enough that they wouldn't be the source of the problem.
- Jay
Hi Natmonster, thanks for the ticket ID, I've gone ahead and forwarded it to the appropriate team to investigate it further.
