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What does "Allow Full Access" actually do?

Updated July 19, 2026· Plain-text version

“Allow Full Access” is the permission iOS shows for third-party keyboards. Apple’s warning is broad because the permission can allow a keyboard to use shared storage, read the clipboard, and access the network. What an individual keyboard actually does depends on its implementation and privacy policy. Here is the narrower behavior KeyPaste uses it for.

What works without Full Access

You can use KeyPaste’s core features with Full Access turned off:

  • Browse your saved library from the keyboard.
  • Filter by tags and folders.
  • Insert saved plain-text snippets with a single tap.

KeyPaste exposes a read-only snapshot of your library to the keyboard, so browsing and text insertion do not require Full Access. Secure text fields and apps that disable third-party keyboards can still prevent any custom keyboard from appearing.

What Full Access enables

Turning Full Access on adds the abilities that need to write to KeyPaste’s shared storage or read the system clipboard:

  • Writing a save request from the keyboard into KeyPaste’s shared App Group queue.
  • Reading the system clipboard when you explicitly choose the clipboard source.
  • Capturing new clipboard text when you switch to the KeyPaste keyboard and have proactively enabled that feature.
  • Copying rich text or an image so you can paste it manually in the destination app.

Does KeyPaste send my data anywhere?

KeyPaste does not record or transmit what you type in other apps. Even with Full Access enabled, clipboard content is read only when you explicitly use a clipboard/save action or have turned on proactive capture. Data is stored locally and, if you enable iCloud sync, in your own iCloud—not on a KeyPaste developer server.

Full Access is therefore optional for browsing and inserting saved text. Enable it only if you want the keyboard-side save, clipboard, rich-text, or image-copy workflows above.

How to turn it on

Open Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → KeyPaste, then toggle Allow Full Access. If KeyPaste’s in-app setup still shows the step as incomplete afterward, switch to the KeyPaste keyboard once so the extension can report its status, then reopen the app.

How to turn it off

Return to the same system screen and disable Allow Full Access. Your saved library remains available for read-only browsing and plain-text insertion; keyboard-side saving and clipboard-dependent actions become unavailable.