MacOS Sonoma Security Annoyance

The recent release of Sonoma has lead to an annoying, security related issue.

MacOS is (rightfully) very security and privacy focussed. Whenever we release a new version of a product, users will be asked this question the first time they run the product.

Users will see this with many products and they are used to answering the question – once.

Another feature that MacOS uses for security is “sandboxed” data. This means that products (like Word) can create a data storage location that only it can access. As we need to interact with Word at quite a deep level, we need access to this location. This is something that the user will also be asked to allow.

The annoying aspect of Sonoma is that it asks this question every time the app is opened and it does not remember your previous response.

This change does not impact the use of our products – if you allow the access, they can do their job. We just wish that you were not asked every time.

Important Notes:

• This change affects a lot of software products, not just us.
• There is nothing we can do to mitigate this change. We are completely at the mercy of Apple.
• The issue has been reported to Apple by many developers and we anticipate that it will be addressed in future releases of MacOS. Having said that, Apple may just choose to keep it.
• The change does not impact on the effective use of our products, it is just annoying.

We will keep you informed of any changes in the future.