A file firewall for Android.
Choose which apps may read, write or list your files, with per-request approval, rules and access logs.
No root. No internet permission.
Filewall keeps your files in its own private storage and lets other apps reach them only through your rules. It plugs into Android's built-in file picker (the Storage Access Framework), so apps need no special support.
- An app (or you, in the system file picker) opens Filewall as a storage location.
- Filewall checks your rules, top to bottom. The first match applies, like a firewall.
- If no rule covers the request, you get a notification and a request card. Allow it for a time you choose (this creates a rule), decline it, or block the app for a time you choose. One decision can answer a whole batch of requests.
- With a PIN set, other apps' access asks for it too. It stays unlocked until the screen locks.
- Rules per app, per folder or per file: allow read, write or list, or block. A rule can extend to subfolders.
- Time-limited rules that expire on their own.
- Optional PIN, with fingerprint or face unlock. Wrong PINs lock you out for longer each time.
- An optional access log of what each app tried and why it was allowed or denied. It can be filtered, exported as CSV, and switched off.
- Silence mode: no dialogs or notifications, rules still enforced and logged.
- No account, no analytics and no network access: the app does not declare the Internet permission. No root needed.
- The PIN is off until you set it. Without it, anyone who opens the app can change the rules. Turn it on in Settings.
- There is no PIN recovery. If you lose it, you are locked out of the app.
- Write on a folder also allows deleting it, with everything inside, including items that have no rule of their own.
- "Disable protection" turns block rules off. Use it only briefly.
- Your files exist only in Filewall's private storage. Uninstalling the app or clearing its data deletes them, and they are not part of Android's cloud backup. Keep copies elsewhere.
- Filewall does not encrypt anything. It protects against other apps and accidental exposure on an unlocked device, not against root access or forensic tools.
| Permission | Why |
|---|---|
POST_NOTIFICATIONS |
Tells you about access requests and blocked access (optional). |
USE_BIOMETRIC |
Fingerprint or face unlock in addition to the PIN (optional). |
RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED |
Ends any open authentication session when the device restarts. |
QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES |
Lists your installed apps when you create a rule, and shows the name and icon of the app asking for access. Nothing is stored or sent anywhere. |
Two more entries appear in the manifest because of libraries: USE_FINGERPRINT (the pre-Android 9
name of the biometric permission) and DYNAMIC_RECEIVER_NOT_EXPORTED_PERMISSION, an internal
permission that only Filewall itself can hold. The app's Permission Disclosure lists everything.
Only the system file picker can reach Filewall's storage: it is protected by the system-only
MANAGE_DOCUMENTS permission.
Download Filewall-v<version>.apk from the
Releases page. It needs Android 10 or
newer and is English only for now.
Every release is signed with the same key. To check it before installing (optional):
apksigner verify --print-certs Filewall-v1.0.0.apk
The SHA-256 digest of the signing certificate is:
845fe51c222dcfd69fd9fb0a8f1ad2e313c08ab95f6b261c2f8c3265e2b6715e
You need the Android SDK and JDK 21 (the version the release workflow uses).
./gradlew assembleRelease
Without a keystore the APK is left unsigned. The releases on GitHub are built and signed by
.github/workflows/release.yml.
Filewall is built on AndroidX, Jetpack Compose, Accompanist, Reorderable and Kotlin, all under the Apache License 2.0. The full list is in NOTICE.
Please use the issue tracker and fill in the template: Android version, device model, app version and what you did. Do not post your PIN, file names you consider private, or full logs without reading them first.
Free software, licensed under the GNU General Public License v3 (see LICENSE). Contact: info@androidlabs.org