DB Labs
Quick Answer
iPhone apps can be granted No Access, Add Photos Only, Selected Photos (limited), or All Photos (full). Since iOS 14, limited access lets you choose exactly which photos each app sees. Apps using the system photo picker need no permission at all — you just select what to share. Audit your app permissions at Settings → Privacy & Security → Photos.
The Four Photo Permission Levels
| Permission | What the App Can Do | When to Grant |
|---|---|---|
| None | No access to any photo or metadata | Apps that do not need photos |
| Add Photos Only | Can save new photos, cannot read existing ones | Camera apps, image generators |
| Selected Photos | Read/write access to specific chosen photos only | Most apps — the safe default |
| All Photos | Full read/write access to entire library including metadata | Photo management apps only |
Full Photo Access: What It Really Means
When you grant an app "All Photos" access, it can read every photo, video, and piece of metadata in your library — including GPS coordinates, timestamps, faces detected by iOS, and the content of the images themselves. It can do this at any time, not just when you are actively using the app.
Very few apps genuinely require full access. A photo editing app with full library integration might need it. But a social media app that just needs you to select a profile picture absolutely does not. If an app asks for full access and you cannot think of a clear reason why it needs it, grant limited access instead.
Limited Access: The Best Default (iOS 14+)
Limited access, introduced in iOS 14, is a significant privacy upgrade. When an app requests photos, you can tap Select Photos to manually choose which specific photos or albums the app is allowed to access. The app has no awareness that other photos exist — it only sees the ones you selected.
You can update the selection at any time. Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Photos → [App Name] → Selected Photos and add or remove photos from the app's visible set.
The System Photo Picker: Zero Permission Required
Apple introduced PHPickerViewController (the system photo picker) in iOS 14 as a way for apps to let users select photos without needing any photo library permission at all. When an app uses this picker, you see a familiar photo browser, select what you want to share, and only those specific images are passed to the app. The app never touches your library directly.
This is the gold standard for privacy. Apple encourages all developers to use it for any use case where the app just needs the user to pick photos. Apps that request full library access when the picker would suffice are being unnecessarily invasive.
How to Audit and Change App Photo Permissions
- Open Settings on your iPhone.
- Tap Privacy & Security → Photos.
- You will see a list of every app that has requested photo access.
- Tap any app to see its current permission level and change it.
- For apps with "Selected Photos," tap to see and modify which photos they can access.
Do this audit periodically — especially after installing new apps. Many apps request maximum access by default during onboarding, and users often tap "Allow" without thinking.
What About Photo Metadata?
An app with full photo access can read not just the image pixels but all EXIF metadata — including GPS coordinates, timestamps, and camera settings embedded in each photo. This is the data that reveals where you live, work, and travel.
For more on this risk and how to mitigate it, see our articles on iPhone photo location privacy and stripping metadata before sharing photos.