Google to split Android contacts permissions for single and bulk edits

Android’s current contacts permission is not granular enough, the report said. An app that just wants to add or update one contact gets the same WRITE_CONTACTS permission as an app that wants to change all of a user’s contacts. Android Authority reported that Google is interested in limiting that access with a system that distinguishes between individual and bulk edits.

Android Authority cited Mishaal Rahman’s post on X and a developer blog post as detailing the upcoming changes. The report tied the effort to Google’s work on Android’s permission system, which grants apps a narrow set of permissions they truly need in order to limit the ability of secretly malicious or otherwise compromised apps to do harm.