macOS Catalina is actually much more aggressive about this. Even in unsigned unsandboxed apps, the OS will pause the app and ask the user for permission when th

macOS Catalina is actually much more aggressive about this. Even in unsigned unsandboxed apps, the OS will pause the app and ask the user for permission when the app tried to access any directory it doesn’t have permission for, and this behavior is replicated across many other parts of the system too (webcam, mic, etc). It’s a bit annoying initially but it’s nice knowing that the system will put control back into my hands whenever apps try to do something shady.