Accessing User Data and Resources

User privacy is paramount. To help people trust your app, it’s crucial to be transparent about the privacy-related data and resources you require and how you use them. For example, you must request permission to access:

  • Personal data, including location, health, financial, contact, and other personally identifying information
  • User-generated content like emails, messages, calendar data, contacts, gameplay information, Apple Music activity, HomeKit data, and audio, video, and photo content
  • Protected resources like Bluetooth peripherals, home automation features, Wi-Fi connections, and local networks
  • Device capabilities like camera and microphone

IMPORTANT Beginning in iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5, you must use the AppTrackingTransparency framework to request the user’s permission if you want to track them or access their device’s advertising identifier. To learn more, see User Privacy and Data Use.

When you submit a new or updated app, you must provide details about your privacy practices and the privacy-relevant data you collect so the App Store can display the information on your product page. (You can manage this information at any time in App Store Connect.) People use the privacy details on your product page to make an informed decision before they download your app. To learn more, see App privacy details on the App Store.

Screenshot of the App Privacy screen in an app’s App Store product page. The top card in the screen is titled ’Data Used to Track You’ and lists contact info, location, and identifiers. The bottom card is titled ’Data Linked to You’ and lists financial and contact info, location, purchases, identifiers, and browsing history.

An app’s App Store product page helps people understand the app’s privacy practices before they download it.

Requesting Access Permission

Before you can use user data or protected resources, you must get people’s permission to do so.

Request permission only when your app clearly needs access to the data or resource. It’s natural for people to be suspicious of a request for personal information or access to a device capability, especially if there’s no obvious need for it. Ideally, wait to request permission until people actually use an app feature that requires access. For location requests, using the location button lets you give people an in-the-moment way to share their location; for guidance, see Using the Location Button.

Request permission at launch only when the data or resource is necessary for your app to function. People are less likely to be bothered by a launch-time request when it’s obvious why your app needs the information. If you want to perform app tracking as soon as people launch your app, you must display the system-provided alert before you collect any tracking data.

The system provides a standard alert that lets people view your request to access their private information or protected resources. You supply a description of why your app needs the items, and the system displays this description in the alert. People can also view your description — and update their choice — in Settings > Privacy.

Write copy that clearly describes how your app uses the data or resource you’re requesting. The standard alert displays your copy (called a purpose string or usage description string) after your app name and before the buttons people use to grant or deny their permission. Aim for a brief, complete sentence that’s straightforward, specific, and easy to understand. Use sentence case, avoid passive voice, and include a period at the end. For developer guidance, see Requesting Access to Protected Resources and App Tracking Transparency.

Example purpose string Notes
White check in a green circle to indicate a correct example. The app records during the night to detect snoring sounds. An active sentence that clearly describes how and why the app collects the data.
White X in a gray circle to indicate an incorrect example. Microphone access is needed for a better experience. A passive sentence that provides a vague, undefined justification.
White X in a gray circle to indicate an incorrect example. Turn on microphone access. An imperative sentence that doesn’t provide any justification.


Here are several examples of the standard system alert:

  • Screenshot of a permission alert for the Pal About app displaying a purpose string that reads ’Allow Pal About to access your location? Turning on location services allows us to show you when pals are nearby.’ Below the string is a small map image containing the Precise On notice and below the map are three buttons in a stack. From the top, the buttons are titled Allow Once, Allow While Using App, and Don’t Allow.
  • Screenshot of a permission alert for the Pal About app displaying a purpose string that reads ’Pal About would like to access your photos. Allow access to photos to upload photos from your library.’ The string is followed by three buttons in a stack. From the top, the buttons are titled Select Photos, Allow Access to All Photos, and Don’t Allow.
  • Screenshot of a permission alert for the Pal About app displaying a purpose string that reads ’Allow Pal About to access your contacts? Find friends using Pal About and add them to your pal network.’ The string is followed by three buttons: From the top, the buttons are titled Only While Using the App, Always Allow, and Don’t Allow.

Using the Location Button

In iOS 15 and later, Core Location provides a button so people can grant your app temporary authorization to access their location at the moment a task needs it. Although a location button’s appearance can vary to match your app’s UI, it always communicates the action of location sharing in a way that’s instantly recognizable.

Image of a lozenge-shaped blue button that displays a white location indicator — that is, a narrow arrow head shape that points to the top right — followed by the text Current Location.

The location button grants your app temporary authorization to request the device location. If your app has no authorization status, tapping the location button has the same effect as when a person chooses Allow Once in the standard alert. If people previously chose While Using the App, tapping the location button doesn’t change your app’s status. For developer guidance, see LocationButton (SwiftUI) and CLLocationButton (Swift).

The first time people open your app and tap a location button, the system displays a standard alert. The alert helps people understand how using the button limits your app’s access to their location, and reminds them of the location indicator that appears when sharing starts.

Screenshot of the alert displayed by the location button that appears on top of a background image showing a partial map of the Western Hemisphere. The alert reads ’Park Finder can only access your location when you choose to share it. When you share your location with this app, a blue location indicator will appear in the status bar.’ Below this text the alert displays a small image of the map, zoomed in to show part of Cupertino. Below the map are two buttons; from the top the titles are OK and Not Now.

After people confirm their understanding of the button’s action, they simply tap the location button when they want to give your app one-time permission to access their location. Although each one-time authorization expires when people stop using your app, they don’t need to reconfirm their understanding of the button’s behavior.

Consider using the location button to give people a lightweight way to share their location for specific app features. For example, your app might help people attach their location to a message or post, find a store, or identify a building, plant, or animal they’ve encountered in their location. If you know that people often grant your app Allow Once permission, consider using the location button to help them benefit from sharing their location without having to interact with the alert.

Consider customizing the location button to harmonize with your UI. Specifically, you can:

  • Choose the system-provided title that works best with your feature, such as “Current Location” or “Share My Current Location”
  • Choose the filled or outlined location glyph
  • Select a background color and a color for the title and glyph
  • Adjust the button’s corner radius

To help people recognize and trust location buttons, other visual attributes aren't customizable. The system also ensures a location button remains legible by warning you about problems like low-contrast color combinations or too much translucency. In addition to fixing such problems, you're responsible for making sure the text fits in the button — for example, button text should fit without truncation at all accessibility text sizes and when translated into other languages.

IMPORTANT If the system identifies consistent problems with your customized location button, it won’t give your app access to the device location when people tap it. Although such a button can perform other app-specific actions, people may lose trust in your app if your location button doesn’t work as they expect.

Using the Microphone in a ShazamKit App

ShazamKit enables audio recognition by matching an audio sample against the ShazamKit catalog or a custom audio catalog. In iOS 15 and later, apps can use ShazamKit to enable features like:

  • Enhancing app experiences with graphics that correspond with the genre of currently playing music
  • Making media content accessible to people with hearing disabilities by providing closed captions or sign language that syncs with the audio
  • Synchronizing in-app experiences with virtual content in contexts like online learning and retail

If you need the device microphone to get audio samples for your app to recognize, you must request access to it. As with all types of permission requests, it’s important to help people understand why you’re asking for access; for guidance, see Requesting Access Permission.

After you receive permission to access the microphone for features that have ShazamKit enabled, follow these guidelines.

Stop recording as soon as possible. When people allow your app to record audio for recognition, they don’t expect the microphone to stay on. To help preserve privacy, only record for as long as it takes to get the sample you need.

Let people opt in to storing your app’s recognized songs to their iCloud library. If your app can store recognized songs to iCloud, give people a way to first approve this action. Even though both the Music Recognition control and the Shazam app show your app as the source of the recognized song, people appreciate having control over which apps can store content in their library.

For developer guidance, see ShazamKit.

Displaying Custom Messaging Before the Alert

Ideally, people already know why you’re requesting their permission based on context, but if it’s essential to provide additional details, you can display a custom message before the alert appears.

Make it clear that opening the system alert is the only action people can take in your custom-messaging screen. People can interpret a pre-alert message as a delaying tactic, so it’s critical to let them quickly dismiss the message and view the system alert. If you display a custom screen that precedes a privacy-related permission request, it must offer only one action, which must display the system alert. Use a word like "Continue" to title the action; don’t use "Allow" or other terms that might make people think they’re granting their permission or performing other actions within your custom screen.

Screenshot of an app’s pre-alert screen that reads ’Allow tracking on the next screen for special offers and promotions just for you, advertisements that match your interests, an improved personalized experience over time. You can change this option later in the Settings app.’ Below the text is a button titled Continue.

White check in a green circle to indicate a correct example.

Screenshot of the Pal About app’s pre-alert screen that reads ’Turning on location services allows us to provide features like: Alerts when your pals are nearby, news of events happening near you, tagging and sharing your location.’ Below the text is a button titled Continue and below the button is the text ’You can change this later in the Settings app.

White check in a green circle to indicate a correct example.

Clarifying Tracking Requests

App tracking is a sensitive issue. In some cases, it might make sense to display custom messaging that clearly describes the benefits of tracking.

Never precede the system-provided alert with custom messaging that could confuse or mislead people. People sometimes tap quickly to dismiss alerts without reading them. A custom messaging screen that takes advantage of such behaviors to influence choices will lead to rejection by App Store Review.

There are several prohibited custom-messaging designs that will cause rejection. Some examples are offering incentives, displaying a screen that looks like a request, displaying an image of the alert, and annotating the screen behind the alert (shown below). For guidance, see App Store Review Guidelines: 5.1.1 (iv).

  • Screenshot of an app’s pre-tracking message that reads ’Allow tracking and get a $100 credit toward you next purchase.’ Below the text is an image of a dollar sign inside a circle. Below the image is a button titled Get $100 credit, followed on the line below by the word Cancel.

    White X in a gray circle to indicate an incorrect example.

    Don’t offer incentives for granting the request. You can’t offer people compensation for granting their permission, and you can’t withhold functionality or content or make your app unusable until people allow you to track them.

  • Screenshot of an app’s pre-tracking message that reads ’Allow tracking for a better experience.’ Below the text is a bar graph image that shows four bars increasing in height from left to right. Below the graph is a button titled Allow Tracking, followed on the line below by the words Don’t Allow.

    White X in a gray circle to indicate an incorrect example.

    Don’t display a custom message that mirrors the functionality of the system alert. In particular, don’t create a button title that uses "Allow" or similar terms, because people don’t allow anything in a pre-alert screen.

  • Screenshot of an app’s pre-tracking message that reads ’Choose Allow when prompted.’ Below the text is an image of the system-provided alert with the Allow option circled. Below the image is a button titled Continue.

    White X in a gray circle to indicate an incorrect example.

    Don’t show an image of the standard alert and modify it in any way.

  • Screenshot of an app’s pre-tracking message that reads ’Allow tracking for a better experience.’ The app’s custom message also includes an upward-pointing arrow and the words Choose Allow in the lower third of the screen. Because the system-provided alert displays on top of the custom message screen, the arrow appears to be pointing to the alert’s Allow button.

    White X in a gray circle to indicate an incorrect example.

    Don’t draw a visual cue that draws people’s attention to the system alert’s Allow button.