I was talking about a movie with a friend and a few minutes later an advertisement for that movie popped up on my computer screen. Very weird. Could apps on my iMac be listening to my conversation? How can I tell what has permission to access the mic in MacOS 12?
It’s hard not to get a bit paranoid when our Web experience so reflects what’s going on in our lives! Most of the time it’s related to the fact that all our devices are tightly connected, so a search in a movie app for showtimes to a film can definitely trigger an advert for that film showing up in your Facebook feed! The more concerning question of whether apps are endlessly listening to our offline conversations is concerning, but the answer is that it’s probably not happening. I say “probably” because while I have never read a single substantiated article about this being utilized, I’m going to hedge my bets.
The latest generation of computer operating systems definitely do a much better job of limiting access to the peripherals and devices associated with our computers, so that’s a good thing. On the Mac, for example, access to your camera, microphone, hard drive, calendar, contacts, photos, even location information is all carefully managed. This is all through the Security & Privacy System Preferences area, but you have to know to go there and check it out. So let’s do just that!
SECURITY & PRIVACY ON A MACOS 12 SYSTEM
From the Apple menu on the menubar, choose “System Preferences…“, then look for Security & Privacy:
The icons are distinctive, but there are a lot of ’em on this screen, so look for the little house with the combination lock, as shown above. A click and you’re in Security & Privacy:
Note along the top that there are four main areas: General, FileVault, Firewall, and Privacy. We’ll be focusing on Privacy, but note that this is where you can change your screen lockout timing. FileVault lets you keep your entire hard drive encrypted [which can be a problem if you forget your password!], and Firewall lets you filter and control external access to your system. Finally, there’s Privacy.
PRIVACY OPTIONS IN MACOS 12 SECURITY & PRIVACY
The Privacy tab of the Security & Privacy systems preferences window has a lot going on:
The left side lists all the categories of privacy settings, from Location Services to Photos, Camera to Accessibility, then the right side shows what apps have been granted – and in some cases blocked from – that particular service. As with everything else in System Preferences, this will require you to unlock admin access to make changes, but we’ll get to that in a minute or two.
Meanwhile, notice that quite a few apps and programs on my Mac have access to my location through Location Services, including “Find My”, “Siri & Dictation” and “Voice Memos”. You can disable any as desired, but since you asked about the microphone access, let’s instead click on “Microphone” on the left side.
You can see that on my system Final Cut Pro, KalturaCapture, Microsoft Edge, and Parallels Desktop all have access to the mic built into my MacBook Pro. That doesn’t mean that they’re listening to what I’m saying or doing all the time, of course, just that if the app needs to enable the microphone, I have already granted the necessary permissions.
To disable permission for a specific app, I’ll need to click on the padlock on the lower left. That then prompts to enter the admin password or, if your computer is compatible, utilize a biometric feature to verify identity:
I’ll use TouchID since it’s much easier, and a moment or two later, I’m not ready to withdraw permission. How do you do that? Just uncheck the box adjacent to the app in question with a click. Easy once you know where to look!
Once you’ve unlocked admin access, you can also move around, check other permissions, and remove them too. For example, with Screen Recording:
By the way, if you’re curious about KalturaCapture, it’s a webcam and audio recording app I use to record lectures for the classes I teach at the University of Denver. So yes, it needs screen and microphone access.
Want to grant permission to a new program or app you downloaded or purchased? Most all apps prompt you to do so when you launch the program, but you can also do it directly from Security & Privacy by clicking on “+”. In this instance, you’ll get a file open window showing all available apps:
Be judicious about what apps you grant permission, and definitely don’t do so for any apps or programs that you’ve just downloaded because they’re “really cool” according to a friend of a friend. Trust me on this. And be safe out there!
Pro Tip: I’ve been using and writing about Mac systems since the very beginning of Apple’s hardware offerings hit the market! Please check out my extensive MacOS Help Library for tons of additional tutorials to help you be a happy Mac user too! Thanks.