Remove location access pop up on the iOS Fitbit app

[Rwpjed]

Please remove the annoying, repetitive question when I turn on my Fitbit::Allow Location Access. I am not interested in this feature and feel I am being treated as a child who doesn’t know what is good for them! Show me some RESPECT please, Fitbit. I have disabled location in my iPhone and in the Fitbit app and yet the question repeats, repeats, re

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @Scn, thanks for sharing this suggestion about removing the prompts to turn on the location services on the Fitbit app with us. This idea was already requested in the Feature Suggestions board, so I’ve moved your post here as this will help us to make sure the suggestions don't get confused, or split a popular vote. Please click on the thumbs-up to show your support. Your feedback is truly appreciated and we'll keep tracking this request over time.

[NJNK]

I have to say "no" to Location Access & Bluetooth Sharing every. single. time. I look at the app - this includes within seconds of already saying No when I started my activity. I don't want to share these things, and it honestly makes me feel like your organization thinks I'm too stupid to know I've said no.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @NJNK, thanks for sharing this suggestion about removing the location access prompt on the Fitbit app with us. This idea was already requested in the Feature Suggestions board, so I’ve moved your post here. This will help us to make sure the suggestions don't get confused, or split a popular vote. Click on the thumbs-up to show your support.

[jimbud]

The Fitbit app on IOS consistently shows an error:
"Set Allow Location to Always to track your exercise with your GPS". The toggle options are "No Thanks" and "Open Settings"...
Except I don't trust any app with my GPS data, particularly now that Fitbit is part of google.
I would like to have a "don't ever ask me again" option.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @jimbud, thanks for sharing this suggestion about being able to turn off the location access prompts on the iOS Fitbit app with us. This idea was already requested in the Feature Suggestions board, so I’ve moved your post here. This will help us to make sure the suggestions don't get confused, or split a popular vote. We'll keep tracking this request over time, so please click on the thumbs-up to show your support.

[KernCanyonHiker]

I contacted FitBit to ask them to turn off the pop-up window asking me to allow location services all the time, or some of the time. They replied with a link explaining why it was important for me to do so. I already know why Fitbit is prompting me to turn on my location services when I sync with my iOS device to make possible some of the FitBit features. What I’m telling FitBit is that I am sick and tired of seeing that prompt every single time I launch the FitBit iOS app. I am never going to give Fitbit/Google permission to know where I am. The functionality I need from my Fitbit does not require that I allow location services at all. I love my FitBit and I use it daily. All the features I need I get without having location services turned on. Thank you for asking your programmers to give me the option to turn off that prompt, to say I no longer want to see it. Regards, Steve

[Slushy]

I don't mind Fitbit tracking my location when I am on a run or walk and using the application. Otherwise it don't want to share my location.

While I came here to find out how to turn this message off, that can't be done so I'm adding my vote.

[HJSM]

So this problem stopped for a while and I thought you had seen sense and accepted that some users might not be so keen on having location access always on. But the deeply irritating pop up demands are back. Can you PLEASE stop it asking me to change my settings every single time I go into the app? Surely you can add a “don’t ask me again” option. You obviously can turn it off because it hasn’t been nagging me for months and I have been enjoying the peace. 

[Dean56]

Please disable the constant repeated prompt to turn on location services. I now get this on the app every time I open it or when I return to the Home Screen within the app despite choosing no every time.

[Stacivogue]

Stop asking every time I open the app!  It’s beyond annoying and I know full well you COULD have a checkbox that says “don’t ask me again.”

whatever product manager put this in should be fired. 

[ClemsonCliff]

Completely agree.  It doesn't have to be removed, but it should respect the answer we provide and not prompt again.  When I say "No Thanks" I would expect not to see the prompt again, ever.  It is a complete lack of respect of someone's privacy and choice in how they want to use the app.  I have a Charge 5 and it has its own GPS, so it doesn't need to use my phone.  I only want the GPS on when I am using my app, not all the time.  This seems to have happened in the last week and it makes me want to disable GPS altogether, although it will probably still prompt.  I can't believe that someone thought this was a good idea.  Please change the feature to only ask once, ever.  Thanks!

[GingerGirl13]

Please remove the automatic location/Bluetooth notification that pops up when you open your application. My app asks me every time I open my app to turn my location services on to always. I click no thanks and then it comes right back. I have my location services set to 'when using' which should be enough. Having it set to 'always' drains my batter

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @GingerGirl13, thanks for sharing this suggestion about removing the locations prompts from the Fitbit app with us. Because this idea was already requested in the Feature Suggestions board, I’ve moved your post here. This will help us to make sure the suggestions don't get confused, or split a popular vote. Please click on the thumbs-up to show your support.

[SunsetRunner]

I'm also REALLY bugged by this and even thinking of not replacing my FitBit because of it when it dies.  FitBit really should respect our choices.  I don't need it to track me 24/7.  The fact that they seem so insistent about gathering this data actually makes me feel very suspicious of the motives.  Earlier versions of the app didn't keep prompting me in this way.  I am happy for it to track my while using the app as that makes sense but the rest of the time they can just butt out.  

[NJBert]

EVERY time I go to my FitBit app, I get a notification for "location access & bluetooth sharing". I tap "No Thanks". That should be enough - I do not need the notification EVERY TIME I ACCESS FITBIT!

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @NJBert, thanks for sharing this suggestion about disabling the location access notification from the Fitbit app with us. Because this idea was already requested in the Feature Suggestions board, I’ve moved your post here. This will help us to make sure the suggestions don't get confused, or split a popular vote. Please click on the thumbs-up to show your support.

[Browneyedandi]

I find this absolutely insane that the response is that until enough people complain about this that it will not be changed. I don’t use the GPS feature and don’t want to. I think it’s unsure that in order for me to stop getting these incessant notifications that I must enable a feature that is prompted as a choice. I’m need to FitBit and have been so excited to use it and got the Airia Air as well. I’ve loved absolutely everything but this is angering enough to make me want to take it all back and go with another product. Please change this so that it stops giving these notifications every single time I open the app!! I dont want to enable location services and this is the only app I’ve ever had that does this. It’s beyond frustrating! I don’t mean to be rude or anything but it’s really not right or fair. Please stop these notifications and respect my choice of saying no without trying to force me into it through annoyance. Please.

Moderator edit: all-caps

[Mothis]

I couldn’t agree more! We won’t be upgrading to a new fitbit this year as a result.

[Dean56]

Absolutely agree. I can’t believe they are turning a deaf ear - it must be on purpose because they want to routinely invade our privacy. Apparently they haven’t gotten the memo: people WANT privacy, and do not want their data to be a “commodity” that can create profit!

[KWeb15]

'Second all the previous comments to remove the annoying prompt. Previous versions of the app accepted the "No Thanks' type response. It is disconcerting and suspect that the latest version(s) hound users about this. I appreciate that location access is needed when one is biking or running and one wants to use location features. The Fitbit device prompts for that and it is easy enough IMHO to enable location services temporarily. But there's no reason for Fitbit-Google to be tracking me full time. 

[Mothis]

Question for the moderator: how many upset customers (or former customers) it will take before FitBit makes this change? Getting tired of the same response from the moderators about moving the request to a different board where we can “vote” on it - are there really any users who like this “feature” (and by that I mean users who like being tracked all the time without an option to turn it off without the constant nagging every time they open the app)? Curious as to who those users could be. 

[Slushy]

There are many suggestions for improvements listed on this board and I think that voting is normally a good way to determine which ones are popular and should be implemented.

However, I think this is an exception. Privacy issues are very important to the people affected and if not addressed are likely to drive people away from the product or the brand in general. With many other features, people will just decide to live with them and hope they get implemented.

[arrans]

Agree 100%.

Have spent a frustrating day going back & forth with Support on Twitter attempting to resolve this… and receiving some sketchy answers in the process.

For 5+yrs I have used various GPS enabled Fitbits with location tracking switched off (I never use that functionality, I have other devices I use for that instead). But in the last few weeks this message appears every time I go into the app when it was already open in the background (i.e. not when first opening the app from closed, which is ironic because if you close the app, before long you get a separate notification asking you to keep it open!).

I was told by Support that my Charge 3 needs the location tracking enabled to ‘work properly’ - strange then it hasn’t required that for the previous 18 months, only the last few weeks! Of course there was no answer when I asked why the No Thanks option existed if that was the case.

Privacy concerns aside, I also don’t want the unnecessary battery drain (on either device) of having location tracking on permanently when I don’t use it.

I suspect the real reason for this lies in a desire to use consolidated & anonymised location data for marketing purposes, but come on Fitbit, play fair & make it easier for those who don’t want this to switch it off.

I also found this thread which is about the same topic and has been recently closed by a moderator despite the issue not being resolved. I asked Support to reopen it so I could comment there. but of course they couldn’t and now comments are split over multiple threads.

https://community.fitbit.com/t5/iOS-App/Turn-off-Enable-location-services-prompt/td-p/3316335

[SunsetRunner]

Oh you are definitely right, it is bound to be for marketing. I’m sure though they are working on the very edge of what is actually legal these days. Privacy is a hot topic and web sites have to ask your permission to use cookies for whatever reason. Ok, so they are asking our permission to track us but by constantly asking the same question time and time again they are clearly working on the ideas of wearing us down so we eventually give in and allow just to stop the notifications. I have noticed that far from resolving this issue they have actually ramped up the notifications by having them pop up on my locked screen now as well. 😡

Sally Turner
07956 448690

[NJNK]

Sally, that's unreal!!

I might go the route of finding a different way to track my activities and diet if it start doing that to me, too. I don't allow any notifications, so that's probably why I've not seen it...but dang* that makes me mad!

*You can correctly assume the word in my mind was stronger than that!