Why Loan Apps Request Contact Access To Your Phone
Digital loans have taken over the credit space especially in Kenya. Through the use of downloadable apps from the Playstore/app-store, one can easily access emergency loans from the click of a button.
However, prior to getting such loans, one needs to first grant access to some of the phone’s functions including contact list which will form the basis of this article.
It is no secret that the major use of a mobile phone is to make and receive calls as well as send SMS messages to contacts conveniently saved to our phone-books.
Such contacts may range from close family members, friends, relationships as well as work mates that we possibly interact with on a daily basis.
This is the ultimate reasoning applied by the majority of the digital lenders when requesting for contact list access since it acts as a form of risk control.
Risk control typically implies a set of methods which companies take in-order to prevent or assist in the reduction of potential losses of a particular nature.
This method involves the app collecting and monitoring contact info such as names, phone numbers, contacts last modified, history, frequently contacted numbers etc so as to contact them in the event a borrower is not reachable upon the due date of a loan.
However, this tactic has in the recent past brought about claims of harassment whereby digital lenders indiscriminately bombard contact lists with a barrage of calls and sms regarding loan repayment by the borrower.
The second reason why digital loan apps ask for contact list access is for auto-filling data purposes.
Auto-filling refers to fields automatically being filled using pre-existing data which, in this case, enables the detection of contact references during the registration process.
The third and final reason for phone-book access is for referral purposes whereby it makes it possible to share the app with friends
