Google Photos’ Magic Editor will refuse to make these edits

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Credit: Robert Triggs / Android Authority
  • Code within the latest version of Google Photos includes specific error messages that highlight the edits that Magic Editor will refuse to do.
  • Magic Editor will refuse to edit photos of ID cards, receipts, images with personally identifiable information, human faces, and body parts.
  • Magic Editor already avoids many of these edits but without specific error messages, leaving users guessing on what is allowed and what is not.

Google first announced Magic Editor at Google I/O 2023. The feature is now available inside the Google Photos app on the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. With Magic Editor, you can harness the power of generative AI to perform complex image edits with ease. This lowers the skill and experience barrier and democratizes complex image editing. On the flip side, many have wondered if Google has adopted enough guardrails to prevent users from abusing Magic Editor. As it turns out, there are at least some guardrails present on Magic Editor, preventing users from making these kinds of edits.

Google Photos v6.60 includes code around various error messages that users would see when performing a few prohibited Magic Editor edits. These error messages are reproduced below:

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