App has access to folder outside storage scope

wandr

Send Anywhere is an app i installed and set up storage scope to access the folder 'Send Anywhere' in main storage.
Main storage/Send Anywhere

But when it download a file, it saved it in another folder:
Downloads/Send Anywhere.

Aslo inside the app, it shows the files in the Downloads folder.

Is this expected? I thought it should have access only to that folder which i allowed it to?

Any information would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

Using pixel 7
android 16, build number 2026040800

Developer-Dude

wandr

Without any storage permission, an app is allowed to:
create media files in standard directories (audio in Music/, Ringtones/, etc, images in Pictures/ and DCIM/, videos in DCIM/ and Movies/)
create files of any type (both media and non-media) in Documents/ and Download/
create new directories inside standard directories
rename/delete files that were created by the app itself
rename/delete directories if it can rename/delete all files within those directories

https://grapheneos.org/usage#storage-access

And;

GrapheneOS provides the Storage Scopes feature as a fully compatible alternative to the standard Android storage permissions. Storage Scopes can be enabled only if the app doesn't have any storage permission. Enabling Storage Scopes makes the app assume that it has all of storage permissions that were requested by it, despite not actually having any of them.

This means that the app can't see any of the files that were created by other apps. The app is still allowed to create files and directories, same as any other modern app that doesn't have any storage access permission.

https://grapheneos.org/usage#storage-scopes

Developer-Dude

wandr an app can, without any storage permission, 'create' files in certain directories, but can it also 'read' files in those directories that are not created by it?

Yes it can create directories but NOT read the files in it.

Developer-Dude This means that the app can't see any of the files that were created by other apps. The app is still allowed to create files and directories, same as any other modern app that doesn't have any storage access permission.

wandr

thank you for the helpful response.

one clarification needed pls:

an app can, without any storage permission, 'create' files in certain directories, but can it also 'read' files in those directories that are not created by it?

Dumdum

wandr can it also 'read' files in those directories that are not created by it?

The answer can be found in bold text.

Novaliss

wandr You could play around a bit with a 3rd-party file manager app, and then do the same but with the Stock Files app to get a perception of the limitations. The stock one will show more e.g. under the Android folder.