KPH tech blog

Here’s something that may not be completely obvious: App Permissions. When you install an app or download an app update from the Play Store, or even when you try and perform a certain task within an app, you may get a message asking you for permission to access certain bits of info about you or your device, such as other apps installed, storage access (for storing files, especially if it’s a cerma or photo-editing app), location (e.g. a food delivery app would need to know where you live in relation to the company), contacts list, etcetera.

App Permissions, while acting as a source of trust, shouldn’t be too troublesome, and should only appear the first couple of times. Allowing an app access to certain functions can prove to be a necessary requirement to install the app in the first place – not accepting the terms tends to stop the install process. These permissions can be denied/toggled off at a later date by going into the Settings app, but that will mean more notifications and permission prompts in the future when trying to access an app’s core functions.

After a while of using an Android device, it becomes almost commonplace to just click accept without really paying any attention to the long list of permissions an app needs – especially as many apps of the same kind (photo editing apps, social media, video apps) tend to want the same permissions.

Recently, however, app permissions have been driving me crazy on my HTC Desire Eye. Every time I click accept, it seems to allow the app permission for that time only; but, if I dare to switch my phone off at the end of the day, by the next day I have to redo the whole process of accepting these permissions, often delving into the Settings app and re-allowing every permission for every app that asks for approval. Annoyingly, these ‘permissions’ have stopped me from using core system apps like Chrome, Camera and Calendar.

I’ve heard that resetting the device back to factory defaults should solve this, but it hasn’t. I figured that I’d probably have to clear the system cache and fiddle around in Recovery mode, but that didn’t seem to work either. Then I figured I’d need to root my phone, but why should I need to go that far? I really can’t work out whether it’s an error with the Android 6 firmware, HTC Sense UI overlay, or a major phone hardware error.

Permissions: iOS vs Android

That’s why I’m concerned that it’s a widespread Android problem, and, indeed, after a brief glance at some of the pages over on the xda-Developers forum, it appears this may be true.

However, it could also just be a problem with my device, and may not affect me so much on a newer phone. Therefore, I wanted to know if this was a problem on iOS as well, or just related to Android.

This forum discussion on Stack Overflow has a useful list regarding app permissions in iOS 10, and after reading this article on How To Geek, it appears that iOS Permissions work in a similar way to Android.

Indeed, How To Geek even reckoned that iOS Permissions are better than Android’s: whereas a user may feel like they have more control over an app’s permissions, Android has more of a take it or leave it approach to these permissions. iOS treats them as permission toggles, Android treats them as requirements/necessities.

Conclusion

I think app permissions are going to happen regardless of the platform, and I’d be happy to keep accepting them, just not if they transform my phone into a narcissistic nagging machine.

UPDATE:

After playing around with my new Galaxy S7 for a couple of months, the prompt comes up when downloading certain apps from the Play Store but not others. In-app, they don’t appear as often as they did on my Desire Eye, suggesting that the problem was just associated with that device alone.