@Ligonsker It's preference. I have worked out code where the user id is part of image name. And using some string functions I compare it with Auth::id as an auth check. But many ways to tweek it to work as needed.
I normally will serve secure images through a script rather than an img tag, just my preference.
I also do not store private images in storage, rather in a folder outside of web altogether. You have to ensure your server allows full folder access.
@jlrdw
you mean that if the app is inside /var/www/myapp, I can place it somewhere like /var/images and give nginx permissions to that folder as well? (that what you mean by "ensure your server allows full folder access"?)
Also what do you mean by script? That you use JS to display images? (or maybe Vue/React?)