REST/SOAP Export role inconsistency on search_by_module get_entry_list

[mcmlxxii]

The Opacus Thunderbird extension uses the REST call get_entry_list to search for SugarCRM records, because of the limitations of search_by_module:

+ No way to retrieve e.g. Opportunities/Cases linked to contacts by email - i.e. search string is an email address, find matching contact and return related records.
+ In v2, no way to specify select_fields (this is available in v4) which makes returning account_id for instance impossible.

Problem is, get_entry_list requires export permissions on the module being queried.

This sort of made sense, although it was a nuisance. However, search_by_module now has pretty much the same if not identical functionality (offset, select_fields) and does not require export permissions. Simply put a % in the search string and export all the fields you wish.

Can someone explain if the roles will be revisited on this now?

[mcmlxxii]

On further testing the v4 webservice actually returns results now even when a user is in a role that restricts export.

I don't seem to be able to find any documentation about this change. Could someone from SugarCRM comment on whether this is a design decision before I write a bunch of code based around a bug?

Thanks,

Jon