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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Cropped iPhone screenshots are saved in full after editing.
- It’s an iOS bug that can expose information I meant to hide.
- I found one fix, but always check screenshots before sharing.
I started using the iOS 27 developer beta the moment it released, but then I hit an annoying bug: my Roku remote app kept freezing, forcing me to close and reopen it every time I wanted to use it. That was frustrating enough that I reverted to iOS 26.
Also: After a week with iOS 27, I’ve found 5 hidden features that make even older iPhones better
Unfortunately, while running iOS 26.5.2, I noticed an even more annoying bug: My cropped screenshots wouldn’t save.
Cropped iPhone screenshots won’t save
Normally, when I take a screenshot on my iPhone, I tap the crop button on the full-screen preview, drag the handles around the exact portion I want to keep, and hit Done. The cropped version then saves to Photos. But a few weeks ago, that stopped working.
I took a screenshot, cropped it from the preview, sent it to a friend, and only noticed afterward that the full image was shared. Not the crop. I opened Photos and found the original screenshot sitting there, uncropped, with everything I had specifically tried to remove still visible. It was especially irksome because I had cropped out sensitive information that my friend ended up seeing.
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Not the end of the world, but enough to make me wonder what the heck had happened. Now, it’s occurring every time I try to crop.
I cannot save a cropped screenshot at all. Well, technically, I can open the Photos app, find the full screenshot in my library, tap Edit, crop it there, and then the edited version will finally save. But that’s tedious and not how I typically use my iPhone. Multiple times a day, I take a screenshot, crop it from the preview, and share it immediately. That’s the workflow I like and would prefer to have back.
Note: To see full-screen screenshot previews on iPhone, open Settings > General > Screen Capture > turn Full-Screen Previews on.
Why this iPhone bug is a privacy issue
This isn’t simply an aesthetic issue. When I crop a screenshot, it’s because I want to remove or hide information, whether that’s my address, a phone number, a message preview, a browser tab, a Slack notification, or some other detail that should not be shared.
If the iPhone appears to crop the screenshot but then silently saves and shares the full image, that’s not just a random bug. It’s a privacy issue, especially for someone like me who takes tons of screenshots and even uses them for published stories.
Also: I never use a new iPhone until I change these settings – why they’re such a big deal
I searched to see whether this was a known bug and found several iPhone users complaining about the same problem on Reddit, TikTok, and various other forums. The behavior’s consistent: Screenshots looked cropped in the preview interface, but the image saves as the original full screenshot. Strangely, many users claimed that the first iOS 27 developer beta introduced the bug.
Remember, I installed iOS 27 developer beta 1, but later went back to iOS 26, so it’s interesting that I’m also experiencing the issue.
The only fix I’ve found for now
Digging further, I found some users claiming that installing the second iOS 27 developer beta fixes the cropped screenshot problem. So I installed that beta and immediately tested it. Nope. That didn’t work for me. The crop still wouldn’t save correctly.
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Then, this morning, my iPhone prompted me to install the third iOS 27 developer beta, which was released earlier this week. I did, and I’m very happy to say that it finally fixed the problem. After the update, I took a screenshot, cropped it directly from the preview, saved it to Photos, and the cropped version actually saved. I tested it a few more times, and the result is consistent. Wonderful.
Even better, the Roku app is working correctly again.
Should you install iOS 27 beta 3?
So, for now, that is the only fix I’ve been able to confirm: installing iOS 27 developer beta 3.
Not everyone should rush to install developer beta software on their main iPhone. You should back up your iPhone before installing it, and know that early iOS betas can break apps, drain battery life, cause problems, and introduce new bugs while fixing old ones. That’s exactly what happened to me after I installed the first developer beta, and my Roku remote app started freezing.
Also: How to free up your iPhone storage almost immediately – 8 easy ways
Still, for anyone dealing with this screenshot crop bug and desperate to fix it, iOS 27 developer beta 3 appears to be the build to try — until Apple rolls out an official fix in a broader release. ZDNET has an entire guide on how to install the iOS 27 developer beta.
I’ve contacted Apple for a comment and will report back if I learn more.