Android defines a set of permissions that third-party apps can request. Permissions are categorized by sensitivity; most permissions are either "normal" or "dangerous". Normal permissions are granted automatically, without prompting the user; dangerous permissions are presented to the user when the app is installed and the user is asked to consent to granting them.
Question: For any particular Android permission I have in mind, how can I tell whether it is a normal permission or a dangerous permission? Is there a list of dangerous permissions and a list of normal permissions?
(I know that third-party apps can declare their own permissions. I'm only asking about standard permissions. I know it may not be possible to get a 100%-complete list. I'm only looking for best-effort; something is better than nothing.)
For a related but different question, see also Where can I get a list of Android permissions (however, that's a different question; it doesn't at the normal vs dangerous distinction, and I don't necessarily need a complete list).
For more simplicity, below are list of Normal permissions taken from official docs:
As of API level 23, the following permissions are classified as PROTECTION_NORMAL:
ACCESS_LOCATION_EXTRA_COMMANDS
ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE
ACCESS_NOTIFICATION_POLICY
ACCESS_WIFI_STATE
BLUETOOTH
BLUETOOTH_ADMIN
BROADCAST_STICKY
CHANGE_NETWORK_STATE
CHANGE_WIFI_MULTICAST_STATE
CHANGE_WIFI_STATE
DISABLE_KEYGUARD
EXPAND_STATUS_BAR
FLASHLIGHT
GET_PACKAGE_SIZE
INTERNET
KILL_BACKGROUND_PROCESSES
MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS
NFC
READ_SYNC_SETTINGS
READ_SYNC_STATS
RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED
REORDER_TASKS
REQUEST_INSTALL_PACKAGES
SET_TIME_ZONE
SET_WALLPAPER
SET_WALLPAPER_HINTS
TRANSMIT_IR
USE_FINGERPRINT
VIBRATE
WAKE_LOCK
WRITE_SYNC_SETTINGS
SET_ALARM
INSTALL_SHORTCUT
UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT
And here is list of Dangerous permissions and permission groups:
CALENDAR : READ_CALENDAR, WRITE_CALENDAR
CAMERA : CAMERA
CONTACTS : READ_CONTACTS, WRITE_CONTACTS, GET_ACCOUNTS
LOCATION : ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION, ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION
MICROPHONE : RECORD_AUDIO
PHONE : READ_PHONE_STATE, CALL_PHONE, READ_CALL_LOG, WRITE_CALL_LOG, ADD_VOICEMAIL, USE_SIP, PROCESS_OUTGOING_CALLS
SENSORS : BODY_SENSORS
SMS : SEND_SMS, RECEIVE_SMS, READ_SMS, RECEIVE_WAP_PUSH, RECEIVE_MMS
STORAGE : READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE, WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
Normal permissions are granted automatically, without prompting the user
AFAIK, the documentation is wrong here.
dangerous permissions are presented to the user when the app is installed and the user is asked to consent to granting them
AFAIK, all permissions have this behavior.
What this may have morphed into is that dangerous permissions are always displayed and normal permissions are ones that might be "below the fold" if there are enough dangerous ones.
For any particular Android permission I have in mind, how can I tell whether it is a normal permission or a dangerous permission? Is there a list of dangerous permissions and a list of normal permissions?
You can look at the source code.
I found this blogpost listing the "default" permissions by protection level. I think, this is the kind of list you were looking for.
The list might have changed in the meantime though, as the post is 10 months old. It provides sample code to recompile the list by yourself.
From android M permissions will be granted at runtime. User consent is not required for Normal permissions but for Dangerous permissions user is required to grant the permission to application.
Normal permissions: https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/security/normal-permissions.html
Dangerous permissions: Dangerous permissions cover areas where the app wants data or resources that involve the user's private information https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/security/permissions.html#normal-dangerous
Here is a good article which describes every thing about run time permissions ,
Normal permissions
android.permission.ACCESS_LOCATION_EXTRA_COMMANDS
android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE
android.permission.ACCESS_NOTIFICATION_POLICY
android.permission.ACCESS_WIFI_STATE
android.permission.ACCESS_WIMAX_STATE
android.permission.BLUETOOTH
android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN
android.permission.BROADCAST_STICKY
android.permission.CHANGE_NETWORK_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIFI_MULTICAST_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIFI_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIMAX_STATE
android.permission.DISABLE_KEYGUARD
android.permission.EXPAND_STATUS_BAR
android.permission.FLASHLIGHT
android.permission.GET_ACCOUNTS
android.permission.GET_PACKAGE_SIZE
android.permission.INTERNET
android.permission.KILL_BACKGROUND_PROCESSES
android.permission.MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS
android.permission.NFC
android.permission.READ_SYNC_SETTINGS
android.permission.READ_SYNC_STATS
android.permission.RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED
android.permission.REORDER_TASKS
android.permission.REQUEST_INSTALL_PACKAGES
android.permission.SET_TIME_ZONE
android.permission.SET_WALLPAPER
android.permission.SET_WALLPAPER_HINTS
android.permission.SUBSCRIBED_FEEDS_READ
android.permission.TRANSMIT_IR
android.permission.USE_FINGERPRINT
android.permission.VIBRATE
android.permission.WAKE_LOCK
android.permission.WRITE_SYNC_SETTINGS
com.android.alarm.permission.SET_ALARM
com.android.launcher.permission.INSTALL_SHORTCUT
com.android.launcher.permission.UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT
Dangerous permissions
in Android Studio,you can open your AndroidManifest.xml and press F1 on every permission you used then you can see if it is dangerous which the doc may shows.
New permissions are added as new Android versions are released, so any list included in your code will go out of date.
If you need a future-proof approach, it's possible to determine at runtime whether a permission is dangerous.
fun Context.isDangerousPermission(permissionName: String): Boolean {
val permissionInfo: PermissionInfo = try {
packageManager.getPermissionInfo(permissionName, 0);
} catch (ex: PackageManager.NameNotFoundException) {
return false
}
return if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= 28) {
permissionInfo.protection == PermissionInfo.PROTECTION_DANGEROUS
} else {
permissionInfo.protectionLevel and PermissionInfo.PROTECTION_DANGEROUS != 0
}
}
This extension function returns true if a permission is dangerous.
For example:
activity.isDangerousPermission("android.permission.CAMERA") // true
activity.isDangerousPermission("android.permission.INTERNET") // false
Related
What is the difference between privapp-permissions.xml in system/etc/permissions and default-permissions.xml in system/etc/default-permissions?
For refernce: https://github.com/opengapps/opengapps/issues/518#issuecomment-355230967
The link didn't understand properly.
Every private permissions used by apps in /system/priv-app/ should be put in privapp-permissions.xml.
The dangerous permissions used by apps in /system/ can be granted by default by system/etc/default-permissions.
private permissions are permissions declared in platfrom with system|signatured flags.
dangerous permissions are runtime permissions should be granted by users.
While requesting storage permissions in android 6, Is it better to -
1) ask for both READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE and WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE through activity?
2) specify both android.permission.READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE and android.permission.WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE in manifest?
I noticed that by requesting only read permission, the storage permissions toggle button gets toggled, so technically I am getting both by asking for just one.
You always have to request permissions through the manifest. Whether you also have to request them via requestPermissions() depends on OS version and your targetSdkVersion.
I noticed that by requesting only read permission, the storage permissions toggle button gets toggled, so technically I am getting both by asking for just one.
At present, while we request permissions, users grant permission groups. That may change in the future.
I'm trying to write to a value on AT. I've already declared required permission as follow in manifest,
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.WRITE_SETTINGS"/>
And try to request permission at run-time, AT shows windows regarding permission setup. However the switch is not clickable. Regarding AT document
Requesting Permissions at Runtime is not supported because embedded
devices aren't guaranteed to have a UI to accept the runtime dialog.
Declare permissions that you need in your app's manifest file. All
normal and dangerous permissions declared in your app's manifest are
granted at install time.
However Settings.System.canWrite() always returns false.
Are there any special methods to enable permission WRITE_SETTINGS?
Like you said, the documents say:
Declare permissions that you need in your app's manifest file. All normal and dangerous permissions declared in your app's manifest are granted at install time.
Therefore you don't see the normal Android permissions UI.
From the release notes:
Dangerous permissions requested by apps are not granted until the next device reboot. This includes new app installs and new elements in existing apps.
So try powering off and on your Android Things device
After install application with the statement on AndroidManifest.xml as follow
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.WRITE_SETTINGS"/>
It needs to be also run Settings as follow via adb
adb shell am start -S com.android.settings/.Settings
Then click APPS>YOUR_APP, then click permission.
Now the switch is clickable. So AT not granted to permission. It needs to be granted manually.
This permission is having Protection level: signature.Which means this permission is only granted to system apps.
Please find the below screenshot for your reference :
I stucked on new permission model in the Android 6.
I defined following permissions in the manifest:
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.INTERNET"/>
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.VIBRATE"/>
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW"/>
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED"/>
<application...
But if i launched the app in the emulator and opened the app detail i saw the following :
It says that app does not require any permission.
How can i solve it please?
Many thanks for any advice.
It says that app does not require any permission.
That is correct. That portion of your app's page lists dangerous permissions. None of yours have a protectionLevel of dangerous.
How can i solve it please?
There is nothing wrong, and so there is nothing to solve.
Until Android 6.0, There are some permissions that will be automatically granted at install time and will not be able to revoke. We call it Normal Permission (PROTECTION_NORMAL). Here is the full list of them:
android.permission.ACCESS_LOCATION_EXTRA_COMMANDS
android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE
android.permission.ACCESS_NOTIFICATION_POLICY
android.permission.ACCESS_WIFI_STATE
android.permission.ACCESS_WIMAX_STATE
android.permission.BLUETOOTH
android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN
android.permission.BROADCAST_STICKY
android.permission.CHANGE_NETWORK_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIFI_MULTICAST_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIFI_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIMAX_STATE
android.permission.DISABLE_KEYGUARD
android.permission.EXPAND_STATUS_BAR
android.permission.FLASHLIGHT
android.permission.GET_ACCOUNTS
android.permission.GET_PACKAGE_SIZE
android.permission.INTERNET
android.permission.KILL_BACKGROUND_PROCESSES
android.permission.MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS
android.permission.NFC
android.permission.READ_SYNC_SETTINGS
android.permission.READ_SYNC_STATS
android.permission.RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED
android.permission.REORDER_TASKS
android.permission.REQUEST_INSTALL_PACKAGES
android.permission.SET_TIME_ZONE
android.permission.SET_WALLPAPER
android.permission.SET_WALLPAPER_HINTS
android.permission.SUBSCRIBED_FEEDS_READ
android.permission.TRANSMIT_IR
android.permission.USE_FINGERPRINT
android.permission.VIBRATE
android.permission.WAKE_LOCK
android.permission.WRITE_SYNC_SETTINGS
com.android.alarm.permission.SET_ALARM
com.android.launcher.permission.INSTALL_SHORTCUT
com.android.launcher.permission.UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT
Just simply declare those permissions in AndroidManifest.xml and it will work just fine. No need to check for the permission listed above since it couldn't be revoked.
as #Saini said, Beginning in Android 6.0 (API level 23), users grant permissions to apps while the app is running, not when they install the app.
But if you choose targetSdkVersion lower than 23, your application will be treated like before and will ask user to grant permission to the app when they want to install application. you could read more from here
Beginning in Android 6.0 (API level 23), users grant permissions to apps while the app is running, not when they install the app. This approach streamlines the app install process, since the user does not need to grant permissions when they install or update the app. It also gives the user more control over the app's functionality; for example, a user could choose to give a camera app access to the camera but not to the device location. The user can revoke the permissions at any time, by going to the app's Settings screen.
For more info: https://developer.android.com/training/permissions/requesting.html
https://developer.android.com/training/permissions/declaring.html
https://developer.android.com/training/permissions/best-practices.html
// Here, thisActivity is the current activity
if (ContextCompat.checkSelfPermission(thisActivity,
Manifest.permission.READ_CONTACTS)
!= PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {
// Should we show an explanation?
if (ActivityCompat.shouldShowRequestPermissionRationale(thisActivity,
Manifest.permission.READ_CONTACTS)) {
// Show an expanation to the user *asynchronously* -- don't block
// this thread waiting for the user's response! After the user
// sees the explanation, try again to request the permission.
} else {
// No explanation needed, we can request the permission.
ActivityCompat.requestPermissions(thisActivity,
new String[]{Manifest.permission.READ_CONTACTS},
MY_PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_CONTACTS);
// MY_PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_CONTACTS is an
// app-defined int constant. The callback method gets the
// result of the request.
}
}
In addition to https://stackoverflow.com/a/42697645/984471
Here is the protection_normal permissions link:
https://developer.android.com/guide/topics/permissions/overview#normal_permissions
And the comparison between old and new, normals
I want to provide a functionality in my App for which I need the permission INTERNET.
However, not all user may want to use this functionality and since this is a very strong permission I don't want to force everyone to give it to the App if they want to use it, only if they want to use this functionality.
So I have to ask for that permission at run-time. the minimum sdk for the App is 15 and I don't want to set it higher.
The method requestPermissions(String[],int), which I can call in my Activity is only available with API 23, but I can callActivityCompat.requestPermissions(this,new String[]{Manifest.permission.INTERNET},0);, but it doesn't no dialog is shown.
And yes, I have checked if the permission is already granted:
if(ContextCompat.checkSelfPermission(this,Manifest.permission.INTERNET)!=
PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED)
ActivityCompat.requestPermissions(this,new String[]{Manifest.permission.INTERNET},0);
What am I doing wrong?
android.permission.INTERNET persmission comes under automatically granted persmission therefore there is no need to ask for it.
Here is the list of automatically granted permission list. These permissions will be automatically granted at install time and will not be able to revoke.
android.permission.ACCESS_LOCATION_EXTRA_COMMANDS
android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE
android.permission.ACCESS_NOTIFICATION_POLICY
android.permission.ACCESS_WIFI_STATE
android.permission.ACCESS_WIMAX_STATE
android.permission.BLUETOOTH
android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN
android.permission.BROADCAST_STICKY
android.permission.CHANGE_NETWORK_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIFI_MULTICAST_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIFI_STATE
android.permission.CHANGE_WIMAX_STATE
android.permission.DISABLE_KEYGUARD
android.permission.EXPAND_STATUS_BAR
android.permission.FLASHLIGHT
android.permission.GET_ACCOUNTS
android.permission.GET_PACKAGE_SIZE
android.permission.INTERNET
android.permission.KILL_BACKGROUND_PROCESSES
android.permission.MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS
android.permission.NFC
android.permission.READ_SYNC_SETTINGS
android.permission.READ_SYNC_STATS
android.permission.RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED
android.permission.REORDER_TASKS
android.permission.REQUEST_INSTALL_PACKAGES
android.permission.SET_TIME_ZONE
android.permission.SET_WALLPAPER
android.permission.SET_WALLPAPER_HINTS
android.permission.SUBSCRIBED_FEEDS_READ
android.permission.TRANSMIT_IR
android.permission.USE_FINGERPRINT
android.permission.VIBRATE
android.permission.WAKE_LOCK
android.permission.WRITE_SYNC_SETTINGS
com.android.alarm.permission.SET_ALARM
com.android.launcher.permission.INSTALL_SHORTCUT
com.android.launcher.permission.UNINSTALL_SHORTCUT
refer this for more
android.permission.INTERNET permission is a normal permission. So it automatically granted without any dialog. See more details here.
What targetSDKVersion did you set? You have to set it to 23, otherwise permissions policy will be from older platforms.