LinkedIn is one of the most popular professional social networking sites, with over 800 million members worldwide. As a site built around making connections for career and business opportunities, LinkedIn encourages users to connect with people they know and trust.
One way LinkedIn does this is by giving users the option to upload their phone contacts to LinkedIn so they can easily connect with people they already know. However, this understandably raises questions around privacy and how LinkedIn uses this sensitive information.
Does LinkedIn Upload Your Contacts Without Permission?
The short answer is no. LinkedIn does not automatically upload or access your phone contacts without your explicit permission.
When you sign up for a LinkedIn account through their mobile app, you will be prompted with a pop-up asking if you want to upload your phone contacts to LinkedIn. The language makes it clear that LinkedIn will not access your contacts unless you specifically agree to allow it.
There have been a few instances in the past where bugs caused LinkedIn to pull contact data without proper user consent. But these were quickly fixed once discovered and not part of LinkedIn’s standard practices.
As long as you do not agree to upload your contacts during the sign-up process, LinkedIn will not have access to your contacts without your permission.
What Data Does LinkedIn Collect If You Upload Contacts?
If you do choose to upload your phone contacts to LinkedIn, the data LinkedIn collects includes:
- Names
- Email addresses
- Phone numbers
LinkedIn specifically states that they do not collect any other data from your address book beyond names and contact information. This means details like personal notes, conversation histories, photos, etc. are not uploaded or accessed.
Uploading contacts simply allows LinkedIn to cross-reference your contacts with existing members so it can suggest people you may want to connect with. The actual contact data serves no other purpose for LinkedIn beyond facilitating connections.
How Does LinkedIn Use Your Uploaded Contacts?
LinkedIn uses your uploaded contacts in a few key ways:
- Matching contacts to existing LinkedIn profiles for connection suggestions
- Allowing you to invite non-members in your contacts to join LinkedIn
- Informing you when your contacts join LinkedIn
- Displaying the number of shared connections you have with other members
The main goal is to leverage your real-world network to help expand your LinkedIn network. By uploading your contacts, you allow LinkedIn to provide recommendations, notifications, and other features to simplify the process of connecting professionally.
Beyond the above uses, LinkedIn claims that they do not use contact data for advertising or marketing purposes. The company states that contact information remains separate from profiling data used to target ads or content.
Does LinkedIn Share Your Contacts?
According to LinkedIn’s Privacy Policy, they do not sell, share, or rent any contact information uploaded by users except in a few specific cases:
- With third party service providers working on LinkedIn’s behalf
- When required by law or to protect LinkedIn’s legal rights
- In an aggregated and anonymized form
- With LinkedIn subsidiaries and affiliated companies
Contractually, any third parties that handle user data are required to keep that information secure, confidential, and to only use it for the purposes outlined by LinkedIn.
While subsidiaries and affiliates may have access, they must follow the same privacy policies when handling the data. Contact information is not provided to external parties for marketing or advertising.
Does LinkedIn Provide Data Access to Governments?
LinkedIn’s transparency report indicates that they do at times provide user information to governments and law enforcement agencies if compelled by laws or regulations. However, the majority of these requests are related to actively monitoring for or investigating criminal activity.
LinkedIn states that they “carefully scrutinize” all government data requests and push back when they believe requests are overreaching. But it’s possible certain governments could access limited contact data for investigations or surveillance if LinkedIn is legally forced to comply.
Can You Delete Uploaded Contacts from LinkedIn?
Yes, it is possible to remove any contacts you have uploaded to LinkedIn. To do so:
- Go to your account settings
- Select “Get your data”
- Deselect “Connections”
- Select “Request archive”
This will trigger LinkedIn to prepare an archive of your data while excluding your connections. Once the archive is ready, you will get a notification to download it.
Downloading this archive serves as a request for LinkedIn to delete any contact information you previously uploaded. LinkedIn states they will remove this data from their systems within 30 days of receiving your archival request.
You can also turn off the ability for LinkedIn to suggest connections from your imported contacts. This prevents LinkedIn from accessing the contact data going forward.
Does Disconnecting LinkedIn From Contacts Delete Them?
Simply disconnecting the LinkedIn app or unlinking contacts from your profile settings does not fully delete uploaded contacts. It only prevents additional contacts from being uploaded moving forward.
To fully remove all previously uploaded information, you need to go through the contact archive deletion process mentioned in the section above.
Conclusion
To sum up, LinkedIn does not access or use your phone contacts without consent. If you allow LinkedIn to upload your contacts, that data is primarily used to suggest connections and provide social network integration features.
While LinkedIn does share some personal data with vendors, affiliates, and potentially governments in special cases, there are contractual and legal restrictions around how that data can be used. Users also have the option to proactively delete any contact information they have previously uploaded.
Overall, LinkedIn aims to leverage contact data to improve their service without crossing major privacy boundaries. But ultimately it is up to each user whether they are comfortable uploading their contacts and connecting their real-world network to their LinkedIn profile.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Does LinkedIn automatically upload your contacts without permission? | No, LinkedIn requires user consent before accessing contacts. |
| What contact data does LinkedIn collect if you grant permission? | Names, email addresses, and phone numbers. |
| How does LinkedIn use uploaded contacts? | To suggest connections, enable invites, provide notifications, and show shared connections. |
| Does LinkedIn share your contacts? | Only anonymized data, with affiliates, or if legally required. |
| Can you delete previously uploaded contacts? | Yes, by requesting your data archive without connections. |
This summary covers the key questions around whether LinkedIn accesses your phone contacts. In general, LinkedIn aims to provide transparency and control over contact data while using it to improve the user experience. But there are some risks of data access by third parties and governments that users should be aware of before connecting their contacts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does LinkedIn automatically sync my contacts?
No, LinkedIn will only access contacts if you specifically grant them permission during signup or under account settings. Contacts are not automatically synced or uploaded in the background without consent.
What if I uploaded contacts in the past? Are they still on LinkedIn?
Probably. Any contacts uploaded previously remain in LinkedIn’s systems unless you explicitly request for LinkedIn to delete that data under privacy settings. It does not get automatically removed over time or by simply disconnecting your contacts.
Can I see exactly which of my contacts LinkedIn has stored?
Yes, you can request an archive of all data LinkedIn has collected from you, including any uploaded contacts. This will allow you to review and confirm which information LinkedIn has based on your contacts.
Does LinkedIn read my contacts and collect data from them?
LinkedIn only accesses the names, email addresses, and phone numbers of uploaded contacts. They do not scan, collect, or store any other information or content from your address book.
Can I delete a few contacts without deleting all of them from LinkedIn?
There is no setting to selectively delete individual contacts. Your options are to either delete all previously uploaded contacts or keep them all stored on LinkedIn. You cannot pick and choose specific ones to remove.
Does LinkedIn sell my contact data to advertisers or third parties?
No. LinkedIn has strict policies against selling or sharing contact data with external parties, especially for marketing purposes. They may share contacts with service providers or affiliates working on their behalf, but not unrelated third parties.
Is it safe to connect my contacts on LinkedIn?
There are always risks any time you share private contact data online. But LinkedIn has security measures in place and does not misuse contacts for unrelated purposes. As long as you trust LinkedIn as a company, it is relatively safe to upload contacts you want to connect with.
Can I delete my contacts and then upload them again later?
Yes, you can request LinkedIn delete all your previously uploaded contacts and then add them again later if you choose. Just keep in mind you will have to go through the connection process again for those contacts.
What if I previously allowed access but now want to revoke it?
You can revoke LinkedIn’s access to your contacts at any time under privacy settings. Disconnecting your contacts prevents new uploads but does not delete existing data. To fully remove previously uploaded contacts, you will need to specifically request deletion.
Is there a time limit for how long LinkedIn keeps my contacts?
There is no set expiration for how long contact data will be stored. LinkedIn maintains uploaded contacts indefinitely until a user explicitly requests for that information to be deleted. Contact data does not automatically expire after a certain time period.
Can LinkedIn tell when I delete contacts from my phone?
No, deleting contacts from your phone does not sync with or delete those contacts from LinkedIn. The contacts uploaded to LinkedIn are a snapshot at the time of upload. Changes to your phone contacts are not reflected in real-time.
The Bottom Line
LinkedIn aims to strike a balance between leveraging your real-world network while still preserving privacy over sensitive contact information. Uploading contacts can provide benefits like an expanded professional network and personalized suggestions.
However, it does mean trusting LinkedIn with access to your personal data. While LinkedIn has policies to prevent misuse and external sharing, some limited sharing still occurs with vendors and affiliates. There is also a small risk of government data requests granting access.
The overall risk LinkedIn poses to your contacts remains relatively low, but users should understand and consent to how the data is used before connecting their address book. Maintaining vigilance over your privacy settings and deleting contacts when appropriate can help maximize control over your information.
With knowledge of both the benefits and risks of linking contacts, LinkedIn users can make an informed decision on what’s best for them and their professional network.
