iPhone Apps asking for Bluetooth iOS13

[Jjayf]

What’s up with all these apps asking for access to bluetooth? Since iOS13 apps that have no business needing Bluetooth access have been requesting permission. Apps like banking, news apps, my non Bluetooth router, Facebook.. what gives?

 

[Puonti]

In prior versions of iOS the apps simply used Bluetooth without your permission. In iOS 13 Apple forces apps to ask for permission to use BT, so now you're seeing many apps you had no idea were using it, requesting access.

 

[danmart]

Bluetooth can be used to identify your location based on beacons. That is one reason some apps will want it.

I’m not sure what more legitimate reasons an app might have for needing it. For example, does Word need Bluetooth permissions so I can use my Pencil to annotate documents? I may try denying it to see what happens...

 

[Paco II]

My theory is that this became 'standard' practice when developing an app. In many cases I don't think the intent was nefarious. I wouldn't be surprised if apps that don't really need it update to remove it. I always say no unless I know for certain it is needed.

 

[C DM]

My theory is that this became 'standard' practice when developing an app. In many cases I don't think the intent was nefarious. I wouldn't be surprised if apps that don't really need it update to remove it. I always say no unless I know for certain it is needed.

Noticed a variety of apps ask for it, many of which don't really seem like they would have anything related to Bluetooth that they would need access to it.

 

[Paco II]

Hence my post and theory.

Noticed a variety of apps ask for it, many of which don't really seem like they would have anything related to Bluetooth that they would need access to it.

 

[C DM]

Hence my post and theory.

It would seem to be somewhat odd to request access to something that wouldn't even come up in an app as a standard practice.

 

[Paco II]

It is if that had just become the norm from a development perspective. Everybody copies from everybody else.

It would seem to be somewhat odd to request access to something that wouldn't even come up in an app as a standard practice.

 

[C DM]

It is if that had just become the norm from a development perspective. Everybody copies from everybody else.

Given the variety of apps that I've seen do it, it's still kind of odd. And even that aside, that would be rather bad practice to do it without even realizing it essentially.

 

[Paco II]

Not if everyone is doing it, and the consumer was never seeing it. There was no down side. Until iOS 13.

Given the variety of apps that I've seen do it, it's still kind of odd. And even that aside, that would be rather bad practice to do it without even realizing it essentially.

 

[C DM]

Not if everyone is doing it, and the consumer was never seeing it. There was no down side. Until iOS 13.

That doesn't really make it a good practice, just perhaps one that wasn't notices and/or resulted in issues of some sort...until it did.

 

[Paco II]

Definitely not a good practice. But one nonetheless. At least that is my theory. Again, it will definitely change now with iOS 13.

That doesn't really make it a good practice, just perhaps one that wasn't notices and/or resulted in issues of some sort...until it did.

 

[itsmilo]

As already mentioned, a lot of Apps use Bluetooth for marketing and „Research“ purposes to pin point your and others location. In fact, you don’t even have to approve it to listen to music over Bluetooth in music apps such as Spotify

 

[C DM]

As already mentioned, a lot of Apps use Bluetooth for marketing and „Research“ purposes to pin point your and others location. In fact, you don’t even have to approve it to listen to music over Bluetooth in music apps such as Spotify

I wonder if listening to music is the same thing in the sense of the app having access vs. the audio of the app being passed on to the OS and then the OS routing it to whatever is in use, be it Bluetooth, wired headphones, speaker, etc.

 

[Paco II]

I wonder if listening to music is the same thing in the sense of the app having access vs. the audio of the app being passed on to the OS and then the OS routing it to whatever is in use, be it Bluetooth, wired headphones, speaker, etc.

In iOS, bluetooth used for audio is handled entirely separately than bluetooth used for location aspects. That's why when using it just for audio, you can always say no to that alert.

 

[JRoDDz]

Here's a hypothetical:
You have location services off because of privacy concerns, yet Sally your co-worker doesn't care about privacy and she sits in the next cubicle. Your phone and its apps surreptitiously talks to Sally's phone on the regular revealing your location even though you have location services off.

 

[Paco II]

Not happening. Your phones would have to be actively paired to be communicating via Bluetooth.

Here's a hypothetical:
You have location services off because of privacy concerns, yet Sally your co-worker doesn't care about privacy and she sits in the next cubicle. Your phone and its apps surreptitiously talks to Sally's phone on the regular revealing your location even though you have location services off.

 

[C DM]

In iOS, bluetooth used for audio is handled entirely separately than bluetooth used for location aspects. That's why when using it just for audio, you can always say no to that alert.

Or basically in situations like that that type of access wouldn’t be needed and you wouldn’t get promoted with an alert for it as the app wouldn’t ask for it.

 

[ZEEN0j]

My theory is that this became 'standard' practice when developing an app. In many cases I don't think the intent was nefarious. I wouldn't be surprised if apps that don't really need it update to remove it. I always say no unless I know for certain it is needed.

I’ve read something similar. Common built API’s used by many developers requesting BT when they don’t really need it. I’m sure those apps will get feedback from users about this and will remove the request as it might seem weird for a banking app for example to request BT access.

 

[Paco II]

No question we'll see it removed from many apps. And at a minimum we'll see better messaging as to why a given app needs it.

I’ve read something similar. Common built API’s used by many developers requesting BT when they don’t really need it. I’m sure those apps will get feedback from users about this and will remove the request as it might seem weird for a banking app for example to request BT access.