Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Apple Executive Responds to Annoying iOS 16 Copy and Paste Prompt: 'Absolutely Not Expected Behavior'

I like this feature. I don’t want an app reading my clipboard without user action unless it has my permission. If it happens with user action, the third-party developer is using the wrong API.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rmcq and SFjohn
walnuts said:
I'm confused- I thought the whole point was that the phone was highlighting when an app was reading the clipboard contents without the user's consent. It seems to me:

  • The only real way to do this is to alert the user that the clipboard is being used- I'm not sure there is a clear way to do this without badgering the user. Maybe there is some way that the app proves it makes the user aware that it is pasting (if an app uses the clipboard contents, there has to be a clear "paste" action for an app to use the clipboard, or the system throws up the alert)?
  • Wasn't this (or a very similar feature) already issued with iOS 15? It was annoying for a while but went away
  • I've had very few alerts this time around (maybe what I already cleared with iOS 15 was remembered?
Click to expand...

It needs to be a system provided paste option initiated by the user. If the developer invents their own system or just tries to read the clipboard out of the blue then it will ask.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SFjohn
This makes me realize (again) that I really miss the Scrapbook in vintage Mac OS. I wonder if there is an app that does that…
 
LOL. MacRumors once again full of posters mouthing off about a bug as if it’s a feature. “OMG Apple what a stupid feature! Who would want this?”

As it turns out not even Apple wants this. But I’m sure these same posters will be back the next time Apple software has a bug.
 
  • Love
Reactions: SFjohn
chrono1081 said:
Easy, you can test until you’re blue in the face but no matter how many edge cases you try and account for you’re still testing in a bubble. You never know what could happen until your software gets into the hands of real world users.
Click to expand...
These aren’t edge cases by any stretch. An entry-level QA engineer would have run into this.
 
rmcq said:
LOL. MacRumors once again full of posters mouthing off about a bug as if it’s a feature. “OMG Apple what a stupid feature! Who would want this?”

As it turns out not even Apple wants this. But I’m sure these same posters will be back the next time Apple software has a bug.
Click to expand...
Apple hasn’t told us what the intended behavior is supposed to be and under what conditions it should or should not prompt.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sdf and WestonHarvey1
Can this be completely turned off? I never, ever, ever want to be asked permission to paste. My attempt to paste is the permission.
 
  • Like
Reactions: verdi1987
WestonHarvey1 said:
Can this be completely turned off? I never, ever, ever want to be asked permission to paste. My attempt to paste is the permission.
Click to expand...
Right, that's the entire purpose of this article...it's a bug. If you paste manually, it shouldn't prompt you. If the app tries to paste in the background without you knowing, then it will prompt you. It'll be fixed in an upcoming release.

Not everyone is affected by this bug. As I described it above is how it works on my 13 and XS running iOS 16.0. From what I can gather, it seems to be affecting those that have 16.0.1 or upgraded to the 16.1 beta.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WestonHarvey1 and maxoakland
chrono1081 said:
You can’t claim such a thing without knowing the nature of the bug. It doesn’t appear on any of the internal apps according to Apple.
Click to expand...
I can claim such a thing based on 20+ years in software development, including as a QA engineer.

Part of QA testing should include black box testing and using the product as a customer would.

It’s also likely this behavior wasn’t considered a bug according to the functional specification.
 
thadoggfather said:
Are you on an iPhone that isnt a 14 variant? That may be why I think its more prevalent with the new devices
Click to expand...

That’s really weird. Why would it be checking the hardware to determine if it should implement a security feature? Suspicious
 
maxoakland said:
That’s really weird. Why would it be checking the hardware to determine if it should implement a security feature? Suspicious
Click to expand...
It doesn't necessarily have to do with the hardware. The 14 variants have a different iOS version. Most people probably upgraded their 14/14 Pro to 16.0.1, which isn't available for older devices. The latest version for older devices is still 16.0.0. To me, it seems like those that have 16.0.1 or 6.1 beta are experiencing the bug.

verdi1987 said:
It was the first thing I noticed when I installed beta 1.

https://www.reddit.com/r/iOSBeta/comments/vjhimb
Click to expand...
I think this is actually expected behavior here. I don't see where the user is/could be initiating the paste command manually. I get this pop-up in Snapchat too when I copy something from another app and switch to Snapchat and haven't even attempted to paste anything...which is what I'd expect. When I do manually paste something in Snapchat, I don't get the prompt. (Using iPhone 13 on 16.0.0.)
 
  • Like
Reactions: SFjohn
iStorm said:
It doesn't necessarily have to do with the hardware. The 14 variants have a different iOS version. Most people probably upgraded their 14/14 Pro to 16.0.1, which isn't available for older devices. The latest version for older devices is still 16.0.0. To me, it seems like those that have 16.0.1 or 6.1 beta are experiencing the bug.


I think this is actually expected behavior here. I don't see where the user is/could be initiating the paste command manually. I get this pop-up in Snapchat too when I copy something from another app and switch to Snapchat and haven't even attempted to paste anything...which is what I'd expect. When I do manually paste something in Snapchat, I don't get the prompt. (Using iPhone 13 on 16.0.0.)
Click to expand...
He/She mentions it "taking away from the seamless act of pasting something," so it seems he/she is initiating a paste. Maybe the example was just to show the dialog, but the user meant an intentional paste.

Anyway, I also experienced it from the beginning.
 
iStorm said:
It doesn't necessarily have to do with the hardware. The 14 variants have a different iOS version. Most people probably upgraded their 14/14 Pro to 16.0.1, which isn't available for older devices. The latest version for older devices is still 16.0.0. To me, it seems like those that have 16.0.1 or 6.1 beta are experiencing the bug.
Click to expand...
I see. That makes a lot more sense
 
  • Like
Reactions: SFjohn
verdi1987 said:
I can claim such a thing based on 20+ years in software development, including as a QA engineer.

Part of QA testing should include black box testing and using the product as a customer would.

It’s also likely this behavior wasn’t considered a bug according to the functional specification.
Click to expand...

I'm a software developer too and have been doing it since the 90s. I stand by my previous statement. No matter how much you test there is always something you can't account for.
 
  • Like
Reactions: I7guy, Artemis70 and SFjohn
WestonHarvey1 said:
Can this be completely turned off? I never, ever, ever want to be asked permission to paste. My attempt to paste is the permission.
Click to expand...
In a world with third party programs, it's difficult for the OS to be sure it was your attempt to paste. What the OS sees as you tapping on a Paste button could be (just for instance) a button relabeled Refresh, or a Copy button defined as click-transparent dropping events through to a Paste button beneath.

It might actually be impossible to get this 100% right, but I'm not placing a bet either way.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SFjohn
I’m still experiencing this bug when using Command-V to paste on iPad with the latest iPadOS 16.1 beta.
 
Still having this issue, over a month later after this article was posted. 😥
I use SwiftKey as my keyboard. It seems every time I want to paste something, the phone is asking if I want to allow it.

I understand privacy. It seems to me the simple fix is to allow apps access to the clipboard, one time, when installed/updated. Like the article mentions, camera, location, and other settings are set once and done.


I see iOS 16.1 was just released a couple hours ago, so perhaps that fixed the issue? MacRumors doesn't mention it being fixed in the article: https://www.macrumors.com/2022/10/24/apple-releases-ios-16-1/
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back