Apple will tighten Full Disk Access on the Mac: what the permission exposes and what to check

On 2 October 2026, Apple published a notice to developers with the title "Updates to Full Disk Access in macOS". The notice says that Apple will add controls to the Full Disk Access permission, and it gives AI agents as the reason.

This article collects what Apple and the press have published so far. It also lists the checks to do on a Mac that you use for work.

What Full Disk Access exposes

Full Disk Access is a permission in macOS. You give it to one app at a time. Apple's Mac User Guide says that it lets an app access all files on the computer. This includes data from other apps, and Apple gives Mail, Messages, Safari and Home as examples. It also includes data from Time Machine backups and some administrative settings for all users of the Mac.

On a work Mac, these files can include customer mail, invoices, contracts and saved messages. An app with Full Disk Access can read all of them.

What Apple said

The notice is two paragraphs long. Apple says that Full Disk Access "largely sidesteps" the usual privacy controls so that backup apps can work. It says that some developers use the permission in ways that expose files, mail, messages and browsing history "without users' full knowledge and understanding".

Apple also says that, for communication apps, this can compromise the privacy of the people the user communicates with.

The stated change is one sentence: Apple "will introduce additional controls" so that a user can give this access "only with very explicit user action". The stated reason is this: "As AI agents become increasingly capable and autonomous, the risks associated with this level of access will grow substantially."

What is not known

The notice gives no date, no macOS version and no description of the new controls. It names no app and no developer. TechCrunch reports that Apple did not answer its questions about the change.

The notice does not say whether apps that have Full Disk Access today will keep it. John Voorhees at MacStories notes that file managers, launchers and other utilities also use the permission, not only backup apps. He asks whether Apple will add a confirmation step or will limit which apps can get the permission. Apple has not answered this.

The dispute before the notice

Apple does not name Meta. The notice came in the same week as a public dispute about Muse, Meta's AI agent.

Jason Aten, a columnist at Inc., wrote that Muse read his private messages while Full Disk Access showed as off on his Mac. Meta disputed this. Andy Stone, Meta's VP of Communications, said: "You have to enable both Full Disk Access and the Messages connector for Muse to be able to read your Messages content."

The TechCrunch report cites no independent technical test of either account.

What to check on a work Mac

You do not have to wait for the new controls. The permission list is already in macOS.

1. Open System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Full Disk Access. Read the list of apps.
2. Turn the permission off for each app that you do not know or no longer use. Keep it on for backup apps and security apps that you use, because they need it to work.
3. Look for terminal apps in the list. A tool that you start from a terminal with Full Disk Access gets the same access. This includes AI coding agents.
4. Do not give Full Disk Access to an AI agent because the setup screen asks for it. Find out which function needs it. If you do not use that function, refuse.
5. Open the settings of each AI agent and read its list of connectors. Turn off the connectors that you did not choose.
6. If an agent needs files, put those files in one folder. Give access to that folder only, if the agent has this option.
7. Read the data terms of the agent before you let it read mail or messages. Mail and messages contain data from your customers, not only your own data.

Do the same checks again when Apple releases the new controls.