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Facebook could be accessing your photos: here's how to stop it
A trip to your account settings lets you see what sort of information you're handing over to the social media app and your contacts
With so many settings across Facebook’s desktop and mobile apps, you might have enabled certain features that use your data without realising. One of these, called camera roll sharing suggestions, gives Facebook 'permission to access your device's camera roll' – essentially all the photos in your phone's gallery.
If you’re not happy with Facebook having access, the good news is that you can turn it off in your device settings. From the same Settings & Privacy page, you can also manage who can see what you share, how people can find you on Facebook, device permissions and more.
Below, we explain how to stop Facebook from accessing your phone's camera roll. Plus, we've highlighted some additional privacy and security settings worth checking to help keep your personal information safe across Facebook and Messenger.
If you don’t have time to read our full article, you can still boost your Facebook account’s security by checking these settings in the Facebook app:
- Revoke camera roll access – Tap your profile picture and choose Settings & Privacy > Settings > Camera roll sharing suggestions.
- Use the Privacy Checkup tool – From Settings & Privacy > Settings, choose Privacy Checkup. There are various sections to work through, including Who can see what you share and Your data settings on Facebook.
- Set up two-factor authentication (2FA) – Within the Settings & Privacy page, choose See more in Accounts Centre > Password and security > Two-factor authentication. Follow the instructions.
How to turn off camera roll access
Within the Facebook mobile app, a page on Camera roll sharing suggestions is used to 'manage how your camera roll can be used to help you create and share on Facebook'. A message on the Facebook app explains:
'When you give permission to Facebook to access your device's camera roll to post photos and videos, we use basic metadata (e.g. when photos were taken or which are favourited) to make sharing suggestions from your camera roll while you browse Facebook. You can turn this off at any time.'
If you're not fully comfortable with the Facebook app 'accessing your device's camera roll', you can do this:
- Open the Facebook mobile app.
- Tap your profile picture, then Settings & Privacy > Settings.
- Scroll down, tap Camera roll sharing suggestions and disable it.
You can also block Facebook’s access to your photos within your smartphone settings, outside of the social media app itself.
From an iPhone, Open Settings > Privacy & Security > Photos > Facebook. Select None.
If you're using an Android smartphone, open Settings > Apps > Facebook > Permissions > Photos and videos. Select Don't allow. Precise steps may vary depending on the brand of device you're using.
If you're struggling with a mobile that's slow to use or no longer receiving security updates, see our guide to the best smartphones.
More Facebook settings worth checking
Once you’ve checked your camera roll access settings, take a moment to review Facebook’s wider privacy and security options. From the Settings & Privacy screen, see the following:
- Privacy checkup – this is a guided walkthrough covering who can see your posts and how people can find your Facebook account.
- Device permissions – Facebook says it uses information from your device to 'make certain features and products work.' You can manually disable permissions related to your calendar, contacts, location, microphone, photos, videos and more.
- Apps and websites – this page shows you which apps and websites you've connected to your Facebook account. You can review and manage the information each app has permissions to access, or remove their access.
- Password and security – select See more in Accounts Centre and then tap Password and security. We suggest enabling two-factor authentication for an added layer of protection.
- Default audience settings – if this is set to Public, anyone can see what you share. Alternatively, you can choose Friends or Custom (where you manually choose who can see what you share).
- Notifications – if you're getting too many alerts from the app, you can change your notification settings to suit you. (See also: How to get rid of annoying phone notifications)
Lock up your most-used apps with our extensive walkthrough on smartphone apps you need to secure right away.
Privacy settings on Facebook Messenger
It’s also worth opening the dedicated Messenger app and checking your privacy and security settings there.
Open Messenger, then tap Menu > Settings > Privacy & safety, then explore the following:
- App lock – this lets you enable a setting so that Messenger can only be opened after you verify your identity using your face or fingerprint.
- Security checkup – check that your contact information is up to date in case you have issues with your account. This page also lets you change your password and enable Safe Browsing, which warns you if you are sent a suspicious link within Messenger.
- Message delivery – decide whether message requests are sent to your Chats view or your message requests folder, or whether to receive them at all.
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Smartphone image assets created using MockUPhone.
