If you use Facebook, you started
getting messages telling you that a new app, Messenger, was about to be
launched. For weeks these messages would
appear and for weeks I would ignore them.
Why would I need another app? I
get my private messages from Facebook, so what’s the big deal? Well, the “big deal” came when Messenger was
the only way I could access my private messages on my phone. I clicked on the “download app” box and saw
all the information it wanted and I decided that there was no way I would be
downloading this. That lasted about
three weeks. It turned out that it
wasn’t as easy to just get to a computer every time I needed to read a message,
so, I put on my big girl panties and hit “download”.
When I really gave it some thought, I
realized that the only reason I didn’t want the Messenger app was because I
felt it was asking for too much information.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who felt this way. Seeing that Messenger wants to access your
phone, your phone’s camera and see your geo-location, it all seemed a bit
much….at first. But, I had to face
facts: Messenger wasn’t asking for any
more information than other apps that I have.
And, giving it even more thought, I understand why it needs the
information it’s asking for. Of course
it wants to access your phone because that is how you are going to be getting
your message. It needs access to your
camera because that is how you will be sending pictures through the app. Geo-location?
Of course! Without it, how will
it know which of your friends is near you and available for messaging?
I then realized that I was just making
excuses not to download Messenger and it was becoming an inconvenience to
me. Besides, I have quite a few apps
already that need the same information that Messenger needs. GasBuddy uses geo-location to tell me which
gas stations are close to where I am and needs access to the phone’s camera so
that users can post pictures of the gas stations and the price boards. The Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks apps use my
geo-location so that I can get a current list of nearby stores where I could
get my caffeine fix. They also need
access to my phone to keep track of my purchases and send me coupons whenever I
reach my “bonus point” goal. Then,
there’s Swarm (which used to be FourSquare).
I can check in anywhere I visit and with geo-location, it will tell me
if any of my friends are at the same mall I’m at. It will also give me a list of my “favorite”
spots so check-ins are a breeze. Candy
Crush, Words with Friends, Scramble with Friends, and any other games you have
on your phone all need access to your phone and geo-location. So, if I don’t mind giving these apps access,
why do I mind giving access to Messenger when this would actually be the app I
would use the most?
Facebook already knows all about me,
and since Messenger is a Facebook app, what would be the difference if I
allowed this to have my information?
After all, it’s not asking for my Social Security number or banking
information. It started to make less
sense to NOT download Messenger, so, I caved.
