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I am noticing new contacts appearing in Contacts. They are either people I know on social media or who are already in my contacts, but I am seeing as second contact listed with info like website or some other detail I have never added myself. It's like the app is using my existing contacts to find and add info or second contacts I do not want added. Why is this happening and how can I stop it?
iMac Line (2012 and Later)
"... they are ... people I know on social media ..."
Depending how you configure programs like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Dropbox, Skype, third party email apps etc. they often have a setting that allows them to access, use, and even update your Contacts. Typically they will initially request your permission to do this, which I ALWAYS DENY, but sometime in the past you may have allowed this, in which case you need to track it down and change it. This could have happened from a web site (if you access Facebook that way, for instance), or from scores of apps on a cell phone. Even some of my Garmin devices for sports/exercise that connect online try to do this. Contacts does not do this on its own, but if you allow access to your Contacts to various apps or social media programs, they will do this.
On your Mac you can start with Security and Privacy Preference Pane, select Privacy, and see what you have allowed on your Mac for access to Contacts. However this could also be coming from your phone as well, which requires looking into the phone device settings for each individual app.
"... they are ... people I know on social media ..."
Depending how you configure programs like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Dropbox, Skype, third party email apps etc. they often have a setting that allows them to access, use, and even update your Contacts. Typically they will initially request your permission to do this, which I ALWAYS DENY, but sometime in the past you may have allowed this, in which case you need to track it down and change it. This could have happened from a web site (if you access Facebook that way, for instance), or from scores of apps on a cell phone. Even some of my Garmin devices for sports/exercise that connect online try to do this. Contacts does not do this on its own, but if you allow access to your Contacts to various apps or social media programs, they will do this.
On your Mac you can start with Security and Privacy Preference Pane, select Privacy, and see what you have allowed on your Mac for access to Contacts. However this could also be coming from your phone as well, which requires looking into the phone device settings for each individual app.
Actually, another angle on this. I have some contacts added who are people I do not even know, but they work for companies I know. What I see at the top of the contact is the word "FaceTime". So could this be coming from FaceTime?
Thanks. What you are describing is what I suspected might be the case. On my iMac, nothing in Contacts privacy setting shows any app which allows access to any social media, however, on my brand new M1 MacBook Air, under Contacts privacy shows Skype there with a tick box. This could likely be the culprit, but I absolutely never expressly allowed Skype to do that, so this is a mystery. I have unticked it now, so will see what happens.
On my iPhone, a quick Google reveals that you can go into privacy setting in iOS and see which apps have access to Contacts. There I saw Messenger as well as Skype, so I suspect that may have worked. Thank you! Will mark as solved as I think it's so likely.
I see similar FaceTime indicators on my contacts also but I don't have the creation of contacts issue that you do. Note that while in FaceTime or after making phone calls, your phone (or computer) will easily allow you to create contacts from the person you were talking with (or FaceTiming with). But you have to tell it to do that. I think social media settings where you have perhaps inadvertently allowed permission to add to your contacts seems the likely culprit.
Mystery contacts appearing in Contacts app
