PSA: Pokémon Go's Google Account access.

[randomness]

TechCrunch reports Pokémon Go sometimes silently gains full access to your Google account.

This behavior is mostly being reported on iOS, but has also been found on Android. It does not happen on all phone/OS combinations. No pattern has yet been reported.

It's probably best to sign up using a Pokémon Trainer account. The servers are currently slammed, so this is difficult. Another option is to create a Google Account dedicated to Pokémon and use it for nothing else.

Comments

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

*makes a note*

[bryant]

Update from Niantic: https://support.pokemongo.nianticlabs.com/hc/en-us/articles/222648408-Permissions-update

Update regarding the original post: http://gizmodo.com/can-pokemon-go-really-read-all-your-emails-1783479136

TL;DR -- the first report may have been overblown; while the permission screen displayed says "full access," that appears to be inaccurate. However, PGo was still asking for more access than needed and it still needs to be fixed. Google also has an underlying problem to fix.

[r-ness.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the update! I almost invariably avoid logging in to mobile apps with Facebook/Google/Twitter whenever possible so this wasn't an issue for me personally, but given the huge number of people now playing I figured I'd get the word out.