CircusAround To me it's totally ridiculous to see dozens of modules and apps with that permission active by design.
The best way to address this is by quoting the website:
To avoid breaking compatibility with Android apps, the added [sensor] permission is enabled by default.
CircusAround Not every one knows that Gyroscope and Accelerometer can work perfectly as a MICROPHONE.
The fact that sensors can be used as a microphone has been mentioned more than once by project members. They mention this fact quite frequently. Even recently the project account was explaining to someone that hardware switches to kill the microphone don't actually work since all sensors have to be disabled to fully stop apps from recording audio.
CircusAround Similar issue I see regarding that mysterious "Wireless emergency alerts" module, where I'm not allowed by the masters to neutralize "Nearby devices" function/permission.
Both GrapheneOS and AOSP have blocked changing permissions for certain apps/services, and for good reason. There are many people who attempt to "improve" the privacy of their phone by changing permissions, but all they end up doing is messing up their phone somehow. Changing permissions for or disabling system apps can lead to unexpected behavior. Sometimes it can take some time for issues to start popping up, like when there are upstream changes to apps and there can be a cascade of problems. You're more than welcome to disable stuff via ADB. Nobody can stop you, but just know that if or when things start to break, we cannot help you.
I don't know why this specific app has access to Bluetooth, but there are all sorts of reasons why this permission would be necessary. The name of the permission is very vague and you can't know what the app is using that permission for without reading the source code for that app. It could be something simple like checking for wireless hotspots nearby. Just because you see a permission that has a scary name doesn't mean it's spying on you or doing anything malicious.
CircusAround Why, in so numerous threads, almost nobody points at the issue?
There are tons of threads where people ask why apps have certain permissions and we try our best to explain why, but we still end up having to address the same concern over and over again because people don't seem to trust the OS they're using for some reason.
CircusAround Why Graphene OS developers did nothing about that until now?
There's nothing to be done.
CircusAround The (more than)obvious application of that service is to help spying on people. So disgusting to see a possibility of so malicious use facilitated and protected by the "privacy oriented OS".
I really have no idea what you're talking about here. You're talking about an open source app/service that's part of an open source OS. Everything is auditable. If you actually read through the code, you'd find that there's nothing interesting going on there. Like I mentioned earlier, the permission is probably there to do something boring, like to allow the app to see if there's a bluetooth device nearby or something, maybe to avoid blowing out someone's ears when sending an alert (just an example, I don't know what the app does in this case, just to be clear).
CircusAround Perhaps the only way to end that comedy is to physically neutralize BT and NFC modules. And naturally Gyroscope + Accelerometer (that personally I don't need at all, both).
Attempting this would most likely end in you breaking your phone. I personally don't see the point of spending money on a new capable device and then crippling it. The software switches work just fine.
Final thought: Your whole post just oozes suspicion of GrapheneOS. You suspect system apps aren't trustworthy. You suspect apps are spying on you or enabling others to spy on you. There is no spying. There is no conspiracy. Please don't come here spreading misinformation based on something as small as permissions granted to system apps without fully understanding what you're talking about. If you have questions or concerns, please do so without making unfounded accusations.