Mac Inside & Out · macOS Under the Hood · Lesson 2 of 5

Privacy Prompts and Permissions

Decide which apps may see your screen, files or control your Mac.

Why your Mac asks first

You install a new video call app. Before your first call, a box appears: "MeetUp would like to access the camera." You choose Allow or Don't Allow.

That box is a privacy prompt. macOS shows one the first time an app wants something private. Nothing is shared until you say yes. You already met the camera and microphone dots in an earlier lesson, and those are only the start.

Here are the kinds of access apps ask for most:

• Camera and Microphone: to see and hear you.
• Files and Folders: to open what's in Desktop, Documents or Downloads.
• Screen Recording: to see everything on your screen, like when you share it on a call. Recent versions of macOS call this Screen & System Audio Recording.
• Accessibility: to control your Mac, clicking and typing for you. It's meant for helper tools, like apps for people who can't use a mouse.
• Full Disk Access: to read almost every file on the Mac.

Before you click Allow, ask one question. Does this app need it for what I'm doing right now? A video call app needs the camera. A recipe app doesn't need your screen.

If you click Don't Allow by mistake, nothing breaks. You can change your answer later in System Settings, as the next lesson shows.

On Windows, the same choices live in Settings, under Privacy & security.

Checking who has access

Your answers to privacy prompts are saved in one place. To see them, open the Apple menu, choose System Settings, then click Privacy & Security in the sidebar.

You'll see a list like Camera, Microphone, Files and Folders, Screen Recording, Accessibility and Full Disk Access. Click one to see which apps asked. Each app has a switch. Turn a switch off and that app loses access. Some apps need to quit and reopen before the change takes hold.

Full Disk Access is the widest door. Apple says it lets an app reach all the files on your Mac, including other apps' data, Time Machine backups and some admin settings. Backup apps and security scanners may truly need it. Very few other apps do.

Accessibility needs the most care. An app with it can click, type and run commands as if it were you. Apple's advice is to give it only to apps you know and trust.

Scammers know this. A fake support caller may walk you through giving their remote control app Accessibility and Screen Recording. Together, those let them see your screen and work your Mac. You learned to hang up on those callers. This is one more reason why.

A good habit:

1. Every few months, open Privacy & Security.
2. Look through Accessibility, Full Disk Access and Screen Recording.
3. Turn off any app you don't know or no longer use.