LinkedIn authorization allows you to grant access for applications to connect with your LinkedIn account information and perform actions on your behalf. There are a few key things to understand about LinkedIn authorization:
Why Would I Authorize LinkedIn?
The main reasons you may want to authorize LinkedIn access are:
- To allow an app or service to post content to your LinkedIn profile or company page
- To enable an app to access your LinkedIn data and connections
- To let an app manage your LinkedIn ads or other campaigns
For example, authorizing LinkedIn allows services like social media management tools to schedule posts to your LinkedIn profile automatically. It also enables apps that aggregate professional data to access your LinkedIn work history and connections.
How Does LinkedIn Authorization Work?
LinkedIn uses the OAuth 2.0 framework for authorization. This is an industry standard protocol for granting limited access for third-party apps and services to interact with LinkedIn on your behalf.
Here’s an overview of how LinkedIn OAuth works:
- You try to use a third-party app that needs LinkedIn access
- The app redirects you to LinkedIn’s authorization page
- You log into your LinkedIn account if needed
- LinkedIn asks if you want to grant permission to the app
- You can review and adjust the requested permissions
- If you authorize access, LinkedIn provides the app an access token
- The app uses the access token to make API calls to LinkedIn on your behalf
This access token allows the app to interact with specific parts of your account, without exposing your full login credentials. You can revoke this access at any time through your LinkedIn settings.
What Permissions Can I Grant?
When authorizing a LinkedIn app, you will be asked to approve a set of permissions or scopes. These determine what exactly the app is allowed to access and do with your LinkedIn account. The options include:
Permission | Description |
---|---|
r_emailaddress | Read access to your primary email address |
r_basicprofile | Read access to basic profile info like photo, location, etc. |
r_liteprofile | Read your LinkedIn profile fields |
r_organization_social | Read your organization pages and posts |
w_member_social | Write and post social updates to your profile |
w_organization_social | Write posts on your organization’s behalf |
rw_ads | Manage your LinkedIn ads and ad accounts |
These are just some common examples – LinkedIn supports many more permission types. Review the requested scopes carefully during authorization to ensure an app isn’t asking for unnecessary access.
How Long Does LinkedIn Authorization Last?
By default, LinkedIn access tokens expire after 60 days. After this time, the app will need to re-authorize with your LinkedIn account to continue accessing it.
You can also proactively revoke access through your LinkedIn settings at any time:
- Go to your LinkedIn settings
- Select “Apps and Services” in the left sidebar
- Locate the app and click “Remove app”
Revoking access instantly disconnects the app from further interactions with your account. It’s a good idea to occasionally audit authorized apps and remove any outdated or unused connections.
Is LinkedIn Authorization Secure?
Granting LinkedIn access to third-party apps does entail some security risks. However, LinkedIn authorization is designed to be as secure as possible:
- Access tokens provide time-limited access without exposing passwords
- Permissions are narrowly scoped to certain account functions
- HTTPS encryption protects authentication and data in transit
- You can monitor and revoke permissions at any time
That said, it’s still important to only authorize trustworthy, reputable apps with valid reasons for needing LinkedIn access. Avoid granting excess permissions, monitor third-party connections, and revoke access if you have any concerns.
How Can I Authorize LinkedIn on Mobile?
The LinkedIn mobile apps provide similar authorization flows as the desktop website experience. To authorize access on mobile:
- Initiate linking in the third-party app as usual
- The LinkedIn mobile app will open for authentication
- Log in to the LinkedIn app if required
- Review and approve the permission request
- You may need to copy-paste a redirect URL back into the original third-party app
The LinkedIn app will display notifications when new apps obtain access to your account. You can quickly revoke permissions by tapping on these notifications.
Can I Pre-Authorize LinkedIn Access?
LinkedIn does not support pre-authorizing apps for full account access. The authorization flow requires you to actively log in and approve each app requesting access tokens.
However, LinkedIn does allow pre-approving apps for limited Google Sign-In access. This gives apps permission to validate your identity via Google but does not provide API access tokens.
To pre-authorize Google Sign-In:
- Go to your LinkedIn settings
- Select “Apps and Services” then “Authorize Apps”
- Toggle “Allow apps to request access to your account for simplified sign-in”
- Save changes
With this setting enabled, apps using Google Sign-In won’t need active LinkedIn approval on first login. However, they still can’t access your account data until full OAuth authorization is completed.
Is There a LinkedIn API Sandbox?
Yes, LinkedIn provides an API sandbox environment for testing out apps without impacting your real account. The key features of the sandbox include:
- Simulates the LinkedIn API calls and responses
- Provides test user accounts and dummy data
- Lets you generate sandbox access tokens
- Ideal for initial development and testing
To access the LinkedIn API sandbox, you’ll need to register your app and then select “Sandbox” as the default environment. This keeps your app isolated from production LinkedIn data while testing.
Can I Export LinkedIn Data?
Yes, LinkedIn provides data portability by allowing you to request an archive of your account data. This includes profile info, connections, posts, and more. Here’s how to export your LinkedIn data:
- Go to your account settings
- Select “Get a copy of your data”
- Choose desired data types to export
- Enter confirmation code sent to your email
- LinkedIn will email a download link when ready (may take up to 24 hours)
You can also authorize third-party apps to export LinkedIn data on your behalf using the LinkedIn API. This allows services to pull your professional data into external databases or analytics tools, for example.
Can I Import LinkedIn Data?
LinkedIn does not support direct data imports at this time. However, many apps use the LinkedIn API to effectively import data by programmatically adding info to your LinkedIn profile.
For example, an app could use your resume data to populate the LinkedIn work experience and education sections. Services like Docs to LinkedIn leverage LinkedIn APIs to simplify transferring content to your profile.
To enable data imports via third-party apps, you need to authorize the necessary write permissions during the LinkedIn API authorization process.
Conclusion
In summary, LinkedIn authorization provides a secure way to grant limited access to third-party apps to post, read, or manage parts of your LinkedIn account. The OAuth 2.0 framework ensures apps only get restricted permissions with revocable access tokens rather than full credentials.
Review requested permissions carefully when authorizing LinkedIn access in any app. Adjust app access settings or revoke permissions completely if you have concerns. With proper care, LinkedIn authorization provides a safe mechanism to leverage your professional data with external services.