(KTLA) - We take and share photos every day, often without realizing we might be revealing much more than the image itself.
"Almost any time a photograph is taken, there's a lot of data collected along with that photo," said Dr. Ramesh Srinivasan, a professor at UCLA and privacy expert.
Smartphones embed location data in every picture, which means anyone who receives that photo could potentially see exactly where it was taken. That can expose where you live, work, or vacation.
"I think in most cases we are sharing our location and information about us without even knowing it," said Srinivasan.
Social platforms like Facebook and Instagram strip out this location data before others can view it, but not every service does. And even when it's hidden from the public, the platform itself still has access to the information.
"Now, hacking and the absence of data privacy is the new normal because these companies have invaded our privacy," said Srinivasan.
If you want to see what's stored inside your own images, you can upload one to the website OnlineEXIFViewer.com. It displays the phone model, a map of where the photo was taken, and other metadata.
There are ways to stop sharing this information. You can turn off location tagging entirely, but that makes it tougher to find photos in your own collection.
A better way might be to remove it only when you share a photo.
On iPhone and Samsung devices, tap Options at the top of the share screen and toggle off location data.
Pixel users can download an app called Scrambled EXIF to remove data automatically.
On Windows, right-click a photo, choose Properties, then Details, and select Remove properties and personal information.
On Mac, open a photo, tap the info icon, choose GPS, and click Remove Location Data.
"Privacy is dead once the Trojan horse of these phones entered into our lives," concluded Srinivasan.
Keep in mind, some apps also read this location data, which is why your phone is now starting to ask if you want an app to have full access to your photo library or limit access to just specific photos.
It's one more way to stay in control of what you share.