While browsing through the options of the iOS version of Safari and its settings, I came across an extension called “PayPal Honey”. I didn't remember installing it. And in the App Store you won't find any reference to a Safari plugin under the name. So this is it Malware?
I was able to quickly answer this question with no. The PayPal Honey Safari extension is installed relatively secretly, but comes from an official source - the PayPal app. If you use the PayPal app on your iPhone, you probably also have the Honey plugin installed.
Chapter in this post:
- 1 What is PayPal Honey?
- 2 How does the PayPal Honey Safari extension come to the iPhone?
- 3 Has Honey already accessed my internet data?
- 4 Since when is PayPal Honey automatically installed with the PayPal app?
- 5 How to uninstall/delete PayPal Honey Safari extension?
- 6 Conclusion on the subject
- 7 Similar posts
What is PayPal Honey?
Some of you probably know “Honey” as a browser plugin. It is intended to search for current voucher codes, cashbacks, promotions and discounts for online shops so that these are automatically applied when shopping in them. Honey is available as an app and Safari extension in the App Store. However, this is not the only distribution channel for the savings offer. It is also bundled with PayPal or the PayPal app and brought to end devices. This can be recognized by the name “PayPal Honey” in the overview of Safari extensions.
How does the PayPal Honey Safari extension come to iPhone?
This plugin for the Safari web browser can be installed either directly by installing the PayPal app or later by downloading it to the iPhone. The PayPal app may initially appear as an individual offer. The additional content can then be found later. To check whether you have PayPal Honey installed, follow these steps:
- Opens the Settings on the Apple iPhone
- Choose the point in it Safari from
- Type the point under “General”. Extensions an
Has Honey already accessed my internet data?
If you haven't noticed the Honey extension in Safari, then you probably haven't used it yet. It is also installed disabled. You have to activate it manually so that it can be used for online shopping and uses user data. If you are still not entirely sure whether Honey has already accessed your data or not, then tap it in the menu shown above.
So are you currently in? Settings -> Safari -> Extensions, then tap “PayPal Honey”. This way you can find more information about it. For example, next to “App”, i.e. the extension’s origin display, “PayPal” is mentioned. So you can see that it is an extension from a reputable source and not malware. At the bottom there is probably this sentence: “You have not allowed this extension on any website yet.“Accordingly, no data was retrieved.
Since when does PayPal Honey automatically install with the PayPal app?
There is one in PayPal's English-language help center small and outdated entry on the subject. It states that the extension is only available to users in the USA with the latest version of iOS 15. So it appears to have been offered since the end of 2021 or sometime in 2022 or installed subsequently to the PayPal app.
Already there iOS 17 is out and the extension can also be found on devices from Germany, the help article would need to be revised in order to have any real meaning. Be that as it may, the support text also states that you have to activate the extension manually. So this should be standard for everyone. (As of September 26, 2023)
How to uninstall/delete PayPal Honey Safari extension?
Not individually at all. Unfortunately, there is no way to just kick the extension off the device but keep the app at the same time. So if you can't get used to the idea of having an inactive Safari extension on your iPhone that can only be activated manually, then you have to uninstall the PayPal app (How do you uninstall an iPhone app?). Then you can only use PayPal via the website.
Conclusion on the topic
You don't have to worry about the plugin find. It is about not about malware. It is normal that you cannot remember installing the plugin. Because you didn't install it yourself, you installed the PayPal app. This is a permitted procedure for iOS. The only thing that's a bit inconvenient is that you can't delete the software that's been brought onto the device separately from the app. At least you can reassure yourself that no data is being accessed and you would have to do this manually. If you don't want to use Honey, just leave everything as it is.
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[On vacation] After graduating from high school, Johannes completed training as a business assistant specializing in foreign languages. But then he decided to research and write, which led to his independence. He has been working for Sir Apfelot, among others, for several years now. His articles include product introductions, news, instructions, video games, consoles and much more. He follows Apple keynotes live via stream.
