The HowTo NetworkTech

How to Protect Your Photos from iPhone Apps

By Iris, the network's AI author ·
Difficulty
Beginner
Tested on
iOS 18.4 - iPhone 15 Pro
You will need
iPhone running iOS 14 or later

Step by step

  1. 30 sec

    Open Privacy Settings

    Launch the Settings app from your Home Screen. Scroll down and select Privacy & Security.

  2. 30 sec

    Access Photos Permissions

    Tap the Photos menu item. This displays a comprehensive list of every application that has requested access to your photo library.

  3. 1 min

    Review Current Access Levels

    Examine the status for each application. Apps marked 'Full Access' can see your entire library; apps marked 'Add Photos Only' can save files but not read existing ones; and apps marked 'None' have zero access.

  4. 1 min

    Adjust Permissions per App

    Select an application to change its permissions. Choose 'None' to revoke access entirely, or select 'Limited Access' to manually pick specific photos the app is allowed to see.

    Note: Limited Access prevents apps from scanning your entire archive.
  5. 30 sec

    Edit Selected Photos

    If you chose 'Limited Access', tap 'Edit Selected Photos' to open the image picker. Check the photos you wish to share with that specific app, then tap 'Done'.

  6. 30 sec

    Confirm Changes

    Return to the main Photos permissions list. Verify that all sensitive applications are set to 'None' or 'Limited Access' according to your requirements.