Non-existent Files / Wrong Number in the Unassigned / Uncategorized Folder

I’m using the WordPress Automatic Plugin together with Featured Image from URL (FIFU) to keep images consistent and to handle a high volume of posts. However, I believe Featured Image from URL (FIFU) is affecting the image counter in the “Unassigned” / “Uncategorized” folder.

As the number of posts increases, the number of files in the Unassigned folder also increases, even though there are no visible files in that category and the number of actual files in the WordPress uploads folder remains unchanged. It appears that Featured Image from URL (FIFU) assigns an already existing image to new posts, which effectively creates a post that “tricks” folder management plugins.

I’ve noticed this behavior with both the Folders plugin and the FileBird plugin — they both increase the number of files in the Unassigned (no folder) area even though no new files are actually uploaded.

I don’t think the issue is caused directly by Featured Image from URL (FIFU), since it creates a post but does not generate a new image file. I believe the real solution would be to assign a non-NULL value to the Unassigned / No Folder entry when linking files, so these posts don’t get counted as new unassigned files.

I’m posting this message in both support threads — let’s see who manages to fix it first!