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With iOS 17, Apple has introduced a new confidentiality parameter which gives users a much more granular control over applications that can access their photo albums. Since then, it has evolved to offer even more granularity and transparency. Here’s how to limit and manage photos sharing on your device.
Why limit photo access?
Everyone does not know, but when you let an application access the photos of your library, it can also read its metadata. Or as Apple says:
“Photos may contain data associated with location, depth information, legends and audio”.
In other words, if an application has free access to your whole photo album, it means that it could have a fairly good idea of where you live, where you work, how long you are at home and the places you have been, just looking at the metadata.
Although most applications are responsible and respect the confidentiality of users, it should always be the choice of users to choose which applications, if necessary, can access the photos of their albums.
Fortunately, Apple’s privacy parameters allow it.
Choose the photos that each application can see
On your iPhone, head to Settings> Confidentiality and security> Photos.
You will notice that even before entering the photo settings screen, the system informs you of the number of applications that have every type of access to your photos. We will come back to this.
Once you have entered the photo settings screen, you can browse the list of applications and select the level of access to your photos with which you feel the most comfortable for each application.
There are four possible options to choose: none, add photos, limited access and full access. The number of options for each application depends on the level of access to developer’s requests in the code.
Here is what every option means:
- None: If you choose this option, the application will not have permission to access your photo library, even if you try to reach a photo.
- Add photos only: This option allows the application to add elements to your photo gallery, but not to access the photos.
- Limited access: This parameter allows you to preselect the photos or collections that a given application can see in your gallery.
- Full access: It’s quite explicit. Given the extent of access, Apple informs you of the number of photos and videos to which the application will have access.
Alternatively, you can also adjust photo access for a specific application directly from its individual settings. Access Settings> Applications> (Application Name)> Photos, and you will see the same access options described above.
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