Apple plans tighter Mac disk access controls as AI risks grow

Apple said on October 2, 2026, that it plans to tighten controls governing Full Disk Access on Macs, warning that increasingly capable and autonomous AI agents are raising the risks associated with that permission. The company said the new macOS controls would require very explicit action from users who want to grant an app such access.¹²

A broad macOS permission

Full Disk Access can give an application access to files, email, messages and browsing history. Apple said the permission largely bypasses the privacy controls that ordinarily govern access to those categories, allowing applications such as backup tools to work properly. The company said some developers use the permission in ways that can expose information without users fully understanding the extent of the access.¹²

Apple said the risks would increase substantially as AI agents become more capable and autonomous. Desktop agents can be given access to personal material by changing macOS settings, according to TechCrunch, creating a wider range of information that such software may be able to process.¹²

The planned controls are intended to ensure that granting Full Disk Access requires an unmistakable decision by the user. Apple has not described the controls in further detail, and it has not said when the update will be released, according to The Verge.¹²

Dispute over Meta’s Muse

The announcement follows a disputed account involving Muse, Meta’s personal AI agent for Mac. Inc. writer Jason Aten said Muse appeared to know what his private messages contained, despite his assertion that he had never authorised the agent to access them on either his Mac or iPhone. Meta rejected the suggestion that Muse had read the messages without the required approval.¹²³

Aten said Muse suggested a column drawing on a conversation with his podcast co-host and also flagged a message from an editor. He reported that the application had synchronised his Messages database as far as row 187,462, while Full Disk Access was switched off in Muse’s Mac settings. Muse told him that it had seen only text displayed in incoming notification banners, according to The Next Web.³

Meta communications chief Andy Stone said Muse can read Messages content only when a user grants Full Disk Access and also turns on the Messages connector. Separately, Meta Superintelligence Labs executive David Singleton said access to Messages involves three approval steps across Muse and macOS, adding that users do not have to activate the Messages integration.²³

The account does not establish from the available reporting whether Muse accessed Aten’s Messages database without permission. Aten’s account and Meta’s explanation remain at odds, while reports from The Verge and The Next Web support the stated need to grant Full Disk Access and activate the Messages connector.²³

Other reports involving agent access

TechCrunch also referred to a Wired report that a flaw in the ChatGPT Mac application could have allowed attackers to obtain sensitive information. Separately, The Next Web reported that a YouTuber said Muse had supplied his address to a Facebook Marketplace buyer; the user later said he had selected an option allowing continuing access.¹³

These reports concern different applications and circumstances, but each involves the permissions or information available to desktop AI software. Apple’s announced response focuses on the point at which a Mac user grants Full Disk Access, rather than on a specific AI agent or developer.¹²³