When I first got an iPhone some years back, I downloaded the LinkedIn app. I probably clicked thru a dialogue box saying something like “LinkedIn wants to access your contacts”, but I was absolutely certain to not permit the app to import my contacts, invite my contacts to join LinkedIn, or the like. In other words, I figured I was giving the app the ability to access my contacts, but not permission to do so. I stopped using the app for reasons I can’t recall very shortly after trying it out.

Today, I got an email from LinkedIn informing me that one of those email contacts from back in the day has now joined LinkedIn, and I might want to welcome him. I take this as strong evidence that in my initial use of the app, although LinkedIn didn’t spam my contacts, or use my contact in any way visible to me, they seem to have ingested them. Interesting. I’ll be adding a “honey token” contact, just to see what happens.