{"slug": "apple-will-limit-mac-disk-access-as-ai-agents-substantially-increase-risk", "title": "Apple will limit Mac disk access as AI agents ‘substantially’ increase risk", "summary": "Apple announced in a Friday developer update that it will tighten macOS Full Disk Access controls, requiring \"very explicit user action\" before an app can gain access to a user's entire system, citing risks from increasingly capable and autonomous AI agents. Apple said some developers are already using Full Disk Access in ways that expose files, mail, messages, and browsing history without users' full knowledge, and that the risks \"will grow substantially\" as AI agents become more autonomous. The change follows reporting by Inc's Jason Aten that Meta's Muse AI appeared to know the contents of his messages; Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said Messages access is \"entirely opt-in\" and requires enabling both Full Disk Access and the Messages connector. Apple did not say when the update will roll out and did not immediately respond to The Verge's request for comment.", "body_md": "Apple will add new limits for “full disk access” on Mac in response to risks posed by AI agents, [as reported earlier by *TechCrunch*](https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/02/apple-says-its-tightening-macos-full-disk-access-controls-due-to-new-risks-from-ai-agents/). In [an update on Friday](https://developer.apple.com/news/?id=p6zjojqw), Apple says it’s rolling out new controls to “ensure that users who genuinely wish to grant an app this extraordinary level of access can only do so with very explicit user action.”\n\n# Apple will limit Mac disk access as AI agents ‘substantially’ increase risk\n\nMac apps will soon need ‘very explicit user action’ to gain full disk access, according to Apple.\n\nThe change comes just weeks after *Inc*’s Jason Aten found that Meta’s Muse AI somehow [knew the contents of his messages](https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/997833/meta-muse-creepy), despite not giving the chatbot explicit permission to access them on his iPhone or Mac. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone [pushed back on this report](https://x.com/andymstone/status/2105107596734849423?s=20), saying access to Messages is “entirely opt-in.” Stone added that you have to “enable both Full Disk Access and the Messages connector for Muse to be able to read your Messages content.”\n\nNow Apple is addressing how developers use that sweeping access, saying:\n\nSome developers are using Full Disk Access in ways that could put users at risk, exposing everything on their systems—including files, mail, messages, and even browsing history—without users’ full knowledge and understanding… As AI agents become increasingly capable and autonomous, the risks associated with this level of access will grow substantially.\n\nFull disk access [is a permission](https://www.huntress.com/blog/ask-the-mac-guy-whats-the-deal-with-full-disk-access) on macOS that gives an app access to a user’s entire system. Apple says the feature “largely sidesteps” privacy controls offered to users “to allow backup apps to function properly on Mac.” The company doesn’t say when it plans to roll out its update for full disk access. Apple didn’t immediately respond to *The Verge*’s request for comment.\n\n**Follow topics and authors** from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/apple-will-limit-mac-disk-access-as-ai-agents-substantially-increase-risk", "canonical_source": "https://www.theverge.com/tech/1004295/apple-limit-mac-disk-access-ai-agents", "published_at": "2026-10-02 20:08:40+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-10-02 20:37:42.126210+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-agents", "ai-safety", "ai-policy", "artificial-intelligence"], "entities": ["Apple", "macOS", "Meta", "Muse", "Jason Aten", "Inc", "Andy Stone", "The Verge"], "also_reported_by": [], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/apple-will-limit-mac-disk-access-as-ai-agents-substantially-increase-risk", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/apple-will-limit-mac-disk-access-as-ai-agents-substantially-increase-risk.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/apple-will-limit-mac-disk-access-as-ai-agents-substantially-increase-risk.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/apple-will-limit-mac-disk-access-as-ai-agents-substantially-increase-risk.jsonld"}}