Permissions
Learn how permissions work when running and building Actors, what permission levels mean, how to request, grant, and review permissions, and how to keep your data and projects secure.
When you run an Actor, it executes under your Apify account and may need access to your data to complete its task. Actor permissions define how much of that data the Actor can access. Each Actor declares its required permission level in its configuration, and the platform enforces this level at runtime.
The approach is similar to mobile platforms (Android, iOS) where each app has to explicitly request access it needs and the user has to approve it. The difference is that instead of granular per-Actor permissions, we chose just two broad permission levels which should cover the vast majority of use cases. If you are a developer, see the development guide on Actor permissions to learn how to declare and manage permissions for your Actors.
The permissions model follows the principle of least privilege. Actors run only with the access they explicitly request, giving users transparency and control over what the Actor can access in their account.
There are two permission levels:
- Limited permissions (default) — Actors with this permission level have restricted access, primarily to their own storages, the data they generate and resources they are given an explicit access to. They cannot access any other data in your Apify account.
- Full permissions — grants the Actor a access to all data in your Apify account.
This model protects your data and strengthens platform security by clearly showing what level of access each Actor requires.
Actors using limited permissions are safer to run and are suitable for most tasks. Actors that need full permissions (for example to perform administrative tasks in your account, manage your datasets or schedules) clearly indicate this in their detail page so you can make an informed choice.
How Actor permissions work
When a user runs an Actor, it receives an Apify API token. Traditionally, this token grants access to the user's entire Apify account via Apify API. Actors with full permissions will continue to operate this way.
Actors with limited permissions receive a restricted token. This token only allows the Actor to perform a specific set of actions, which covers the vast majority of common use cases. A limited-permission Actor can:
- Read and write to its default storages.
- Update the current run’s status, abort the run, or metamorph to another Actor (as long as it also has limited permissions).
- Read basic user information (whether the user is paying, proxy password, public profile) from the environment.
- Read or also write to storages provided via Actor input (sample scenario: the user provides the Actor with a dataset that the Actor should write into).
- Run any other Actor with limited permissions.
- Create any additional storage, and write to that storage.
- Read and write to storages created in previous runs.
This approach ensures the Actor has everything it needs to function while protecting your data from unnecessary exposure.
Recognizing permission levels in Console and Store
When you browse Actors in Apify Console or Store, you’ll notice a small badge next to each Actor showing its permission level. Hover over the badge to see a short explanation of what access that Actor will have when it runs under your account. Here's how they appear in the Console.
Limited permissions Actors:
Full permissions Actors:
Over time, the distinction between these permission levels will become more prominent. For example, Actors requiring full permissions may display an orange badge, appear lower in Store rankings, or show extra confirmation dialogs when you run them. Whenever possible, choose Actors that use limited permissions. They are safer, easier to trust, and sufficient for most workflows.