How to Manage App Permissions on Android

Want to stop an app from using your camera, mic, or location? Here’s how to see and change what each Android app is allowed to access.

Why: Apps ask for permissions to do their job — a maps app needs location, a camera app needs the camera. But you stay in control: you can grant, deny, or limit any permission at any time, and review them all from one place. None of this uninstalls the app; it just changes what it can reach.

On Pixel, some of these steps require Android 11 or later. Menu wording varies by manufacturer; Samsung One UI differences are noted.

Fix 1: Change permissions for one app

If a single app is asking for too much:

1. Open Settings > Apps (or Apps & notifications > See all apps).
2. Tap the app, then tap Permissions.
3. Tap any permission to switch it between Allow and Don’t allow.

The screen lists what you’ve already allowed and denied, so you can see at a glance what the app can reach.

Fix 2: Fine-tune location, camera, and microphone

These sensitive permissions offer more than a simple on/off:

1. From the app’s Permissions screen, tap Location (or Camera / Microphone).
2. Choose the option you want:
   • Allow all the time (location only) — usable even when you’re not in the app.
   • Allow only while using the app — active only when the app is open.
   • Ask every time — prompts you each time the app needs it.
   • Don’t allow — blocks it entirely.

“Allow only while using the app” is a good default for most apps.

Fix 3: Review every permission at once (Permission manager)

To audit by permission type — for example, “which apps can use my microphone?”:

1. Open Settings > Security & privacy > Privacy > Permission manager (paths vary; on some phones it’s Settings > Privacy > Permission manager, Samsung: Settings > Security and privacy > Permission manager).
2. Tap a permission type, such as Microphone or Location.
3. You’ll see which apps are allowed and denied — tap any app to change it.

Fix 4: Auto-remove permissions from unused apps

To clean up permissions you’ve forgotten about:

1. Open Settings > Apps and tap an app.
2. Under Unused app settings, turn on Pause app activity if unused.

Android then automatically revokes that app’s permissions if you stop using it for a while.

FAQ

Will denying a permission break the app? It may limit a feature (a maps app without location can’t show where you are), but the app keeps working. It will usually re-prompt when it next needs that permission.

What’s the difference between “while using the app” and “all the time”? “While using” only grants access when the app is open on screen; “all the time” (location only) lets it access your location in the background too.

Sources: Android Help — Change app permissions on your Android phone