Prevent unauthorized access to files exposed through Content Providers
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
package="com.example.app">
<application
android:allowBackup="true"
android:theme="@style/AppTheme">
<provider
android:name=".InsecureContentProvider"
android:authorities="com.example.app.provider"
android:exported="true"
android:grantUriPermissions="true" />
</application>
</manifest>
The following
AndroidManifest.xml
configuration defines a
ContentProvider
that exposes application data without proper access restrictions.
- The attribute
android:exported="true"
allows any app on the device to
access this Content Provider.
- The
android:grantUriPermissions="true"
attribute permits other apps to
access sensitive files without additional restrictions.
- Without proper
android:permission
or
android:readPermission
attributes,
any application can query and retrieve sensitive data.
If an attacker or a malicious app exploits this misconfiguration, they can
access or modify sensitive files without authorization.
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
package="com.example.app">
<application
android:allowBackup="true"
android:theme="@style/AppTheme">
<provider
android:name=".SecureContentProvider"
android:authorities="com.example.app.provider"
android:exported="false"
android:permission="com.example.app.SECURE_PERMISSION"
android:grantUriPermissions="false" />
</application>
</manifest>
The secure version restricts access to the Content Provider by:
- Setting
android:exported="false"
to prevent external access.
- Using
android:permission="com.example.app.SECURE_PERMISSION"
to enforce
authentication and limit access to trusted applications.
- Explicitly defining
android:grantUriPermissions="false"
unless required.
These changes ensure that only authorized apps with explicit permissions can
access the files exposed by this Content Provider.