Big news coming for everyone with an Android phone

A new feature in the upcoming Android 17 will give users more control over their personal information.

According to technology media outlet Android Authority, Google is testing a tool called “Contacts Picker” that will change the way apps request access to contacts.

In current Android versions, users must agree to give an app full access to their entire contact list or no access at all.

This all-or-nothing approach has been criticized for years for forcing the user to share more information than necessary.

The new “Contacts Picker” tool will instead allow users to select individual contacts that an app can access.

Instead, the user is presented with a pop-up window where they can select specific contacts, and the app will only have one-time access to information such as name, email address and phone number.

A step towards more data minimization

The feature is similar to the already well-known Photo Picker, which allows you to select specific images or videos to share with an app without giving access to the entire image gallery.

Similarly, Contacts Picker should ensure that only the necessary information is shared.

Android Authority writes that app developers can now define whether their app needs one or more contacts and what specific information is relevant.

This means that the user does not have to share more than necessary.

However, there is a limitation.

App developers are initially given the freedom to choose whether to use Contacts Picker or continue to ask for full access to the contact list.

According to Android Authority, the effectiveness of the feature will therefore depend on whether Google chooses to impose requirements on developers.

In the case of Photo Picker, Google has previously imposed enforced rules restricting app access to media files.

Planned for Android 17

Contacts Picker is still in development, but it is expected that the feature will be part of Android 17 when it is released.

Apps targeted for the new version will be able to use the new feature, while older apps will likely continue with existing permissions.