What exactly is the GrapheneOS "app sandbox"?

freelancer

What the title is asking. I still have no idea how exactly apps are siphoned from each other or how much they can share. Seems like I can't find that information anywhere. I need WhatsApp for work now and want to keep it on my main profile with minimal permissions, but again, what dangers does that present? I just want a clear answer.

Dumdum

freelancer
https://source.android.com/docs/security/app-sandbox

de0u

freelancer I just want a clear answer.

Unfortunately, Android security is very complicated. As just one example, to support people who want to run old apps, apps built against older API levels are allowed to do some things that newer apps are not allowed to do.

If you are clear on which information you wish to protect from whom, it may be possible to get answers to specific questions along those lines. For example, what information do you want Whatsapp not to have?

freelancer

Dumdum so is using separate profiles like everyone on here just overkill?

freelancer

de0u honestly its just a precaution, I know apps can see what other apps are installed on your phone but I really don't want them having anymore access to my information than I give them either through permissions or what I do in app.

I have streaming apps, banking apps, social media like Tiktok, or even third party free movie apks where I don't want them seeing the rest of the stuff I do on my phone, and I assume from what I gear they're all infamous for privacy issues.

Does that make sense?

de0u

freelancer I have streaming apps, banking apps, social media like Tiktok, or even third party free movie apks where I don't want them seeing the rest of the stuff I do on my phone, and I assume from what I gear they're all infamous for privacy issues.

Unfortunately, "the rest of the stuff I do on my phone" isn't sufficiently narrow that it's actionable. For example, pretty much every app on your phone can figure out when you are awake versus asleep. Maybe that's not something that you want to conceal, but my point is that until you can say what you do want to conceal it's difficult for people to reassure you that the things you want to conceal are being concealed.

freelancer

de0u what about if I download those shady piracy movie apks, how much danger dies that add. That should be sufficient enough to give an answer for?

de0u

freelancer What about if I download those shady piracy movie apks, how much danger does that add?

On the one hand, I think definitionally the authors of piracy apps are willing to be criminals and don't respect intellectual property rights. So it seems at least faintly plausible that they wouldn't respect your data if they could get access.

On the other hand, while I am by no means an expert on WhatsApp security, the public record contains at least incident that seems alarming to me (see "September 2022").

So, personally, I think there is a case against mixing apps written by people with an active disrespect for the data of others together with an app with questionable security and lots of private data, in a user profile where the sketchy apps can make IPC requests to the app containing private data.

(There may also be a case against running sketchy apps on one's device at all, since even rigorous security measures can contain bugs.)

GrapheneOS

@[deleted] You're derailing the thread with off-topic posts with inaccurate technical claims.