Android phone app privacy settings control what your dialer can access: call logs, contacts, location, photos and videos, SMS, and system settings. Turn off location, photos, videos, SMS and system-settings access, keep call logs and contacts, then dial ##002# to be sure call forwarding is disabled.
Android phone app privacy settings: what the Phone app can actually reach
Android phone app privacy settings control which permissions the default dialer holds, and on a stock install those permissions typically include location, contacts, call logs, photos and videos, SMS, and the ability to change system settings. Only call logs and contacts are needed for ordinary calling; the rest can be revoked without losing the ability to place or receive calls.
The Android runtime permission model is documented by Google, and it is the mechanism behind every toggle described here: an app must declare a permission, and the user grants or denies it at runtime. Android permissions overview explains the distinction between normal permissions, which are granted automatically, and dangerous permissions such as location and contacts, which require an explicit prompt or a manual grant.
You can confirm what your own dialer holds at any time. Open Settings, then Apps, then Phone, then Permissions. The screen lists each permission group with its current state, and the overflow menu offers an All permissions view that exposes the full manifest-level list, including entries such as reading contacts, modifying contacts, viewing network connections, and full network access.
Some of what appears in that full list is not directly revocable and is not a privacy problem in practice. Network access is required for Wi-Fi calling and for downloading carrier configuration. The permissions worth acting on are the ones tied to personal data: location, photos and videos, and SMS.
Which permissions to turn off first, in order
Work through the Phone app's permission list in this order, because it moves from the access with the least functional benefit to the access with the most:
- Location - set it to Don't allow. A dialer needs location for emergency calling, but that path is handled by the platform and the carrier under emergency-call rules, not by a standing location grant to the Phone app.
- Photos and videos - set them to Don't allow. Media access serves no calling function on a standard dialer. Some manufacturer skins offer optional features that use media, such as custom call backgrounds or video calling extras, and Google Phone app help covers those cases. Check there before switching media access off if you rely on such a feature.
- SMS - this is the one genuine trade-off. Android shows a warning that basic features may not work when you revoke it, because some dialers and carrier builds surface text messages inside the calling interface, and some verification flows read codes from the messaging layer. If you do not want text messages appearing in your dialer, revoke it; if you use that view, keep it.
- Change system settings - covered in its own section below.
- Call logs and contacts - leave both on. The dialer uses them to show who is calling and to place calls from your contact list.
Notifications are also worth leaving enabled: a phone app that cannot post a notification cannot alert you to an incoming call. Music and audio, and any other permission groups your build lists below SMS, are not needed by a dialer at all. Turn them off as well; the rule of thumb is to leave enabled only what calling demonstrably requires.
What each permission actually buys you
| Permission | Needed for basic calling | What you lose if you revoke it |
|---|---|---|
| Call logs | Yes | Caller history and the ability to return a call from the log |
| Contacts | Yes | Names instead of raw numbers, and calling from your contact list |
| Notifications | Yes | Incoming-call alerts |
| Location | No | Nothing for routine calling; emergency location comes from the platform and carrier |
| Photos and videos | No | Optional manufacturer features such as custom call backgrounds |
| SMS | No, with a caveat | Text messages surfaced inside the dialer; some verification flows |
| Music and audio | No | Nothing relevant to calling |
| Change system settings | No | The dialer's ability to change device settings on its own |
Turning off change system settings inside the Phone app
The Change system settings toggle lets the Phone app modify device-level settings, and it is on by default on many builds. Changing it to off means the dialer can no longer alter your system configuration on its own, which is the state most people expect a phone app to be in. If you would rather be the only thing that changes your system settings, this is the toggle to find.
You find it in Settings, Apps, Phone, then scroll to the bottom. The exact label varies by manufacturer and Android version: some builds call it Change system settings, others fold it into a Modify system settings permission entry. Either way, the effect is the same.
Revoking it does not break calling. It removes the dialer's ability to change settings such as ringtone behavior or network preferences programmatically. That capability is occasionally used by carrier-specific features, so if a carrier feature stops behaving as expected after you turn it off, this toggle is the first one to check. Google's Android help pages on app permissions cover the general behavior at Android app permissions help.
Caller ID, spam protection, and recorded calls inside the dialer
Open the Phone app, tap the three-dot menu, then Settings, and turn on caller ID and spam protection. With it off you lose spam screening; with it on you can set the dialer to block spam and scam calls outright. The setting lives in the dialer rather than in Android Settings, which is why people miss it.
The same Settings menu contains a recorded calls entry on devices that support call recording. Recordings accumulate silently, and they sit on the device where anyone with access to the app or the storage can play them. Set the automatic deletion window, commonly one month, and delete existing files manually. Open the recorded calls list to see what is already there; you may find calls you did not intend to keep.
Both settings are governed by dialer and carrier behavior rather than by a single Android-wide standard. Google publishes its own guidance for the Google Phone app at Google Phone app help, and Samsung and other manufacturers document their equivalents separately. If your dialer's menu does not match the description here, the manufacturer's help site is the accurate reference for your build. Gustavo dev doido walks through the same dialer menus on video in the source clip, which is useful when the labels on your phone do not match the written steps.
How to check whether your calls are being forwarded
Dial *#21# to check call forwarding status on your line. The code queries the network for current forwarding rules and returns a message showing whether forwarding is active. If forwarding is on and you did not enable it, something is redirecting your calls. This is a carrier-side setting, so it is independent of anything you change inside the Phone app.
GSM call-forwarding codes are defined in 3GPP technical specification 22.030, which standardises the supplementary service control strings used by mobile networks. 3GPP TS 22.030 is the normative reference for the *#21# query and the ##002# deactivation code, which is why the same strings work across carriers that implement the specification.
If you get an error such as connection problem or invalid MMI code, the query did not reach the network. Common causes include an inactive or recently disabled eSIM, no carrier registration at that moment, a Wi-Fi-only connection with no cellular service, or a carrier that maps the codes differently. Retry once you have confirmed cellular service, or check the forwarding entry in the dialer settings instead.
USSD codes worth knowing
| Code | What it does |
|---|---|
*#21# | Checks the status of all call forwarding rules on the line |
##002# | Deactivates every forwarding rule, conditional and unconditional |
##21# | Deactivates only unconditional forwarding |
These are USSD and MMI strings, not Android settings. They travel over the GSM signalling path to the carrier, which is why the response arrives as a network message rather than an on-screen toggle.
Turning call forwarding off for good
Dial ##002# and press call to deactivate all conditional and unconditional call forwarding on the line. The network confirms with an MMI code started message, and the confirmation text typically states that forwarding has been disabled.
The distinction between the three related codes matters. *#21# checks status; ##002# erases every forwarding rule at once, including rules that forward when busy, when unanswered, and when unreachable, rather than only the unconditional rule. The older ##21# code deactivates only unconditional forwarding, which leaves the conditional rules in place.
Two situations legitimately require forwarding, and ##002# will switch them off without warning. If your carrier uses unconditional forwarding as part of a service you subscribe to, or if you deliberately forward to a second line or to voicemail handling outside the carrier's own system, the deactivation code will remove that behaviour. Re-enable it through your carrier's app or the dialer's call settings afterwards.
Once the confirmation arrives, you can go back to the keypad or your contacts and call normally.
What these settings do not do for you
Revoking dialer permissions and clearing call forwarding does not make a phone private. The operating system, the carrier, and every other installed app retain their own access to location, contacts, and network metadata, and Google account sync, backup, and device-level telemetry operate independently of the Phone app.
Voice calls are carried on the cellular network, where the carrier necessarily processes call detail records including numbers dialed, duration, and cell location. No permission toggle changes that. What the toggles change is local application access, not network-level visibility.
Say what this is plainly: these steps reduce what one app can read from your device and confirm that forwarding is not silently redirecting your calls. They are not a compliance control, not an anonymity measure, and not a substitute for reviewing account-level privacy settings in your Google account or your carrier's portal.
FAQ
Will turning off Phone app permissions stop me from making calls?
No. Call logs and contacts are the permissions that support ordinary dialing, and leaving those on keeps calling and caller identification working. Revoking location, photos, videos, and SMS removes data access that a basic dialer does not require.
What does *#21# actually return?
It queries the carrier network for active call forwarding rules and normally returns a status message followed by MMI code started. An error such as invalid MMI code usually means the query never reached the network, often because the SIM or eSIM is not registered.
Does ##002# cancel all forwarding or only unconditional forwarding?
The ##002# string deactivates every forwarding rule registered on the line, including conditional rules for busy, unanswered, and unreachable states. The narrower ##21# string only cancels unconditional forwarding.
Why does revoking SMS access warn that basic features may not work?
Some dialers and carrier builds surface text messages inside the calling interface, and some verification flows read codes from the messaging layer. If you never use that view, the warning does not describe a feature you will miss.
Does Google's Phone app behave the same as Samsung's or Xiaomi's?
Menu labels, default permission grants, and call recording availability vary by manufacturer and Android version. Google documents its own app at Google Phone app help; for other builds, the manufacturer's help site is authoritative.
Turning a settings walkthrough into an article people can follow
A privacy walkthrough like this one lives or dies on ordered detail. The value is not the opinion that location access is unnecessary; it is the precise sequence, the exact toggle labels, the USSD strings, and the caveat that menu names differ by manufacturer. None of that survives well in a video description.
If you have recorded videos that carry that kind of procedural knowledge, whether they are device tutorials, interviews, or explanations of how a specification actually works, the material already exists in a form readers cannot skim or search. Transcribing a YouTube video and generating an article from it turns that spoken sequence into headings, a table of codes, and answers that show up when someone types the question.
Skalablog handles that conversion: paste a YouTube URL, let the video be transcribed, and produce a structured article you can edit before publishing. Skala Blog
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