What you need to know
- In a recent change, Partner Sharing in the Google Photos app no longer supports photos that originated from a third-party Android app.
- Google confirmed the shift in an update to a support document made sometime in the last month.
- The change seems to also affect unedited screenshots, and Google didn't explain why Partner Sharing now works differently.
Users picked up on a major change to the way Partner Sharing works in Google Photos this month, and now Google confirmed the shift in an updated support document. Partner Sharing will no longer automatically share photos that come from "other apps on Android," according to the document. The confirmation was first spotted by TechIssuesToday, which noted that the support document was updated sometime in the last month based on Wayback Machine archives.
Partner Sharing is a convenient, and automatic, way to share photos with someone you trust, like a family member or significant other. Using this feature, you can choose which photos are automatically shared with your partner. For example, photos can be shared if they include a specific person, or were taken after a specific date.
Additionally, you can share all photos with a partner if you'd like. Since the feature was introduced in 2017, the All Photos option really included every photo, but there are new limitations. Now, there's a disclaimer in the Partner Sharing support document reading: "Tip: Photos from other apps on Android aren't shared with your partner account."
Reddit users spotted the change about two weeks ago, discovering that certain metadata determines whether a photo is shared or not. Downloads, screenshots, and photos from other Android apps won't be sent to another person with Partner Sharing.
This doesn't change if you alter the photo's origin in the Google Photos app, like removing the "screenshot" badge. However, screenshots will be sent through Partner Sharing if they've been edited in Google Photos.
Screenshots not sharing through Partner Share from r/googlephotos
Google hasn't shared the reasoning behind the changes to Partner Sharing. The move could be to protect user privacy, as some users might want to share their photos but not their downloads, screenshots, or pictures from other apps. With that being said, there are already ways to customize which photos are shared with Partner Sharing, so it's puzzling that Google doesn't give users the option to share photos originating from other apps.
At the moment, it does not appear that Google is communicating this change directly to users in the Photos app. Though a new Updates page in the Photos app now exists for changes like this, Partner Sharing users apparently haven't received a message.
