Apple announces changes to ‘full disk access’ on macOS due to AI agents
In a post today on its developer news website, Apple announced that it will introduce “additional controls” for the “Full Disk Access” setting on macOS due to new risks posed by AI agents. The announcement comes amid the rise of always-on AI agents like Meta’s Muse and OpenAI’s Dots, which have sparked privacy concerns.
“Some developers are using full disk access in a way that could put users at risk, by exposing everything on their systems, including files, mail, messages, and even browsing history, without users’ knowledge or understanding,” Apple said.
“As AI agents become increasingly capable and autonomous, the risks associated with this level of access will increase significantly,” he adds.
Here is the full text of Apple’s announcement:
We provide developers with powerful APIs to integrate incredible features into their apps for Apple products, backed by a set of controls designed to protect users’ private data. Full Disk Access largely bypasses these controls in order to allow backup applications to function properly on Mac. Some developers use full disk access in a way that could put users at risk, by exposing everything on their systems (including files, mail, messages, and even browsing history) without users’ knowledge or understanding. For communications apps, this can also compromise the privacy of the people users are communicating with.
In the future, we will introduce additional controls to ensure that users who actually want to grant an application this extraordinary level of access will only be able to do so with very explicit user action. It is essential to resolve this problem. As AI agents become more capable and autonomous, the risks associated with this level of access will increase significantly. We are committed to ensuring that users clearly understand these risks before granting such access, so that they can make informed decisions regarding their own data and privacy.
Apple has not said when the new “Full Disk Access” controls will be implemented.
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