Photoshop ToS grants Adobe access to user projects for 'content moderation'

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Scope of Adobe’s Access & ToS Interpretation

  • New ToS language is seen as granting Adobe broad rights to access user projects for moderation, AI training, and marketing.
  • Some argue it applies only to assets intentionally stored/processed in Adobe’s cloud (e.g., Behance).
  • Others read it as covering any content created with Adobe tools, regardless of storage location.
  • One commenter notes this breadth could clash with NDAs and enterprise compliance, though another guesses NDA‑bound work may not be affected (unclear).
  • Adobe’s own follow-up blog post and ToS diff are linked; one commenter notes the controversial wording pre‑dated the update.

Cloud Features & Data Flow

  • Many features implicitly send content to Adobe: generative AI, cloud rendering, form hosting, review tools, device sync, and security/counterfeiting checks.
  • The terms use broad “Services and Software” wording without clearly separating online vs offline processing, which fuels concern.

Subscription Model, Trust, and “Enshitification”

  • Strong resentment toward Adobe’s shift from perpetual licenses (e.g., CS6) to subscriptions and cloud tie‑in.
  • Some note Adobe products have improved substantially, saving time and “worth the price”; others feel feature development plateaued and releases are driven by marketing.
  • Several describe abandoning major upgrades or freezing systems to keep working setups intact.

Alternatives to Adobe

  • Popular image/graphics alternatives: Affinity suite, Pixelmator Pro, Krita, GIMP, Photopea.
  • Video/motion alternatives: DaVinci Resolve with Fusion, Corel VideoStudio, Kdenlive.
  • Photo workflow: DxO PhotoLab, Capture One (with caveats about licensing), Skylum/Neo, Photo Mechanic, FastRawViewer.
  • PDF editing/annotation: PDF Expert (Mac), Qoppa tools, Master PDF Editor, Xournal++ / XournalPP, LibreOffice.
  • Some worry about startups getting acquired and “enshittified”; preference for open source or source‑available tools because they can’t be taken away as easily.

Piracy, Security, and Morality

  • Several claim it is morally justified to pirate Adobe given perceived spying, lock‑in, and pricing.
  • Others strongly disagree, arguing piracy reinforces Adobe’s dominance and starves alternatives.
  • Debate over safety: some trust long‑running “reputable” cracked versions; others warn of hidden malware and botnets.
  • A recurring sentiment: paid, DRM‑heavy software can feel more hostile and invasive than pirated copies.

Broader Reflections

  • Frustration with vague, catch‑all legal language, especially around AI training and data sharing.
  • Calls for more explicit, B2B‑style disclosure of subprocessors and exact data uses in consumer software.