Has anyone found a sandboxing/muzzling method yet for WhatsApp requiring access to all of your phone contacts to function? I have overseas family that I'd like to keep in touch with, they all seem to use WhatsApp, and I can't get them to use Signal instead. I've tried installing it a number of times, but as soon as I see that it requests Contact List permission and refuses to move forward if I deny it, that gets a big NOPE from me, and I uninstall it.
"If you allow partial access, you'll be prompted to manually select which of your phone’s contacts you want WhatsApp to have access to. In this case, some contact names may not appear when you try to call or message them on WhatsApp. If you create a new contact in your phone’s address book with limited access, it won’t show on WhatsApp until you grant access for this contact in your settings. You can change access at any time by going to your phone's Settings > WhatsApp > Contacts."
Sorry, I should've clarified my last installation attempt was on Android, not iPhone. I don't see an equivalent article, which makes me suspect that this is not an option on Android.
GrapheneOS has the functionality "Contact Scopes" in the same vein as "Storage Scopes" that only provides access to the specific contacts and files you allow.
I have a second google account on my phone specifically for apps that ask for my contact and calendar data. I download the app using that account on the play store, and give it access only to the contacts/calendar of that account. So no data given.
I have the google assistant on that account as well, so I didn't have to turn on several of the tracking options of my primary account but can still use the functionality of the assistant.
I was wondering why there is only Y/N to choose from.
In Xposed Framework of Android, I can give a fake permission that allow to read empty contact list. Do we (or manufacturer) need to maintain the trust between APP and OS?
