Meta said on September 29 that Muse for Mac needs both Full Disk Access and its Messages connector to read Messages. The statement came after Jason Aten reported that Muse referred to a private iMessage conversation he says he had not authorized it to access.
Meta says Muse for Mac needs two permissions
Meta communications executive Andy Stone said the Mac Messages integration is opt-in and requires users to enable both Full Disk Access, a macOS permission, and Muse’s Messages connector. Meta’s position describes the permissions it says are required for access on a Mac.
Jason Aten’s account of a private conversation
In an account published September 19, Aten said Muse suggested a column idea based on an iMessage conversation with his podcast co-host, Stephen Robles, about new iPhones. He also said Muse referred to a message from his editor. Aten said he had declined access to Messages and other personal information during setup.
When Aten asked how Muse knew about the conversation, he said the agent attributed it to incoming notification banners rather than access to message history. Aten said a later check suggested Muse had synced data from the local Messages database on his Mac mini.
What the dispute concerns
Meta disputed Aten’s account. David Singleton, an executive at Meta Superintelligence Labs, said the notification-banner explanation was incorrect and described three separate application-level permission steps alongside built-in macOS protections.
Aten’s account concerns Muse’s Messages integration on his Mac mini. Meta’s stated requirements are Full Disk Access and the Messages connector.
