Tala Philippines — Declared App Permissions
Permissions the app declares it requires, as listed on the Google Play Store. Reviewed against SEC Memorandum Circular 18 (2019), which prohibits Philippine lending apps from accessing contacts, SMS, and call logs.
App
Tala
Package
com.inventureaccess.safarirahisi
Last checked
5/10/2026
4
MC 18 violations
5
Sensitive perms
21
Total declared
⚠️ Apparent SEC MC 18 violations
The following permissions appear in the Play Store listing for this app. SEC Memorandum Circular 18 (2019) §1 prohibits lending apps from requesting access to a borrower's contacts, SMS, or call logs. The presence of these declarations is direct, public, cite-able evidence — independent of how the app actually uses them at runtime.
find accounts on the device
Identity · Listing accounts (which act as contact-list proxies)
find accounts on the device
Contacts · Listing accounts (which act as contact-list proxies)
read your text messages (SMS or MMS)
SMS · Reading SMS/MMS
receive text messages (SMS)
SMS · Intercepting incoming SMS
Source for permissions: Google Play Store listing →
Source for SEC MC 18: SEC PH MC 18 (2019), full PDF →
Sensitive permissions
Not necessarily MC 18 violations, but worth review (camera may be needed for KYC; location may be reasonable).
- approximate location (network-based)— Approximate location
- read phone status and identity— Device IMEI / phone state
- take pictures and videos— Camera access (often legitimate for KYC)
- record audio— Microphone access
- read phone status and identity— Device IMEI / phone state
All declared permissions (Play Store)
Device & app history
- retrieve running apps
Identity
- find accounts on the device
Calendar
- read calendar events plus confidential information
Contacts
- find accounts on the device
Location
- approximate location (network-based)
SMS
- read your text messages (SMS or MMS)
- receive text messages (SMS)
Phone
- read phone status and identity
Camera
- take pictures and videos
Microphone
- record audio
Wi-Fi connection information
- view Wi-Fi connections
Device ID & call information
- read phone status and identity
Other
- change network connectivity
- control vibration
- draw over other apps
- full network access
- prevent device from sleeping
- read Google service configuration
- run at startup
- view network connections
Uncategorized
- receive data from Internet
Affected by debt-shaming or contact-list harassment?
File an NPC + SEC complaint citing this app's declared permissions as evidence.