The era of iOS applications leveraging users’ address books to create their private social networks might be winding down. With the introduction of iOS 18, Apple is imposing stricter controls on social networking applications that request access to user contacts — a common practice for these apps to link users with friends or suggest connections. A new dual-step permission interface will now firstly prompt users to approve or deny contact access as before, but then, upon agreement, users will have the opportunity to selectively share their contacts instead of granting full access.
These adjustments were unveiled during a presentation at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, which highlighted upcoming user privacy enhancements.
Third-party applications that are granted permission to access a consumer’s contacts will maintain this access indefinitely, including updates to the contact list, Apple explains. To afford users greater authority over which contacts an application can access, a two-stage permission interface is introduced.
Initially, a prompt asks users if they wish to allow the app access to their contacts, akin to current practices. However, some developers have exploited this feature as a gateway, barring access to their applications for users who refuse to share their contact lists.
For instance, Lapse, a photo-sharing platform, soared in popularity by mandating users to invite friends as a prerequisite for activation last year. Prior to Lapse, applications such as Poparazzi and Clubhouse garnered notoriety for demanding comprehensive address book access — a strategy that significantly accelerated their user base growth. Similarly, Amo ID, created by Zenly’s founder (which was acquired by Snap), also saw significant uptake by requiring invitations for access.
While such strategies may initially boost user numbers, they often don’t result in long-term growth. Meanwhile, users are forced to compromise their contact list privacy for the sake of experiencing new social platforms.
However, this access might now be more challenging to obtain as iOS 18 introduces a secondary screen after tapping “Continue” on the first prompt, allowing users to choose to share all contacts or select specific ones under the “Allow Full Access” or “Select Contacts” options, thereby limiting access.
Moreover, the introduction of this feature in iOS 18 requires no additional effort or API integration by the developer. Whenever an app requests contact access, these new permission screens will be triggered automatically.
On X, the developer Nikita Bier, known for scaling social apps like Gas and tbh through growth hacks and subsequently selling them to Discord and Facebook, humorously remarked that this update signals “the end of the world,” sharing a screenshot of Apple’s announcement on this new privacy measure.
For enthusiasts of security and privacy, this development is a step in the right direction. The cybersecurity company Mysk commented on X that this would be unwelcome news for applications that thrive on data harvesting. It’s also noted that this change could deter apps from constantly requesting access to the address book after being initially denied, offering users the flexibility to restrict which contacts are actually accessible to these apps.
Furthermore, with iOS 18, there’s no longer a need for apps that allow users to find and add contacts to request full access upfront.
Instead, the newly introduced Contact Access Button will enable an application to display search results for contacts without access, including an “Add” button adjacent to each listed contact. This allows users to individually grant access to contacts with a simple tap.
Compiled by Techarena.au.
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