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  • [NEWS] Apple tightens up macOS Gatekeeper (slightly)

    From Your Name@YourName@YourISP.com to comp.sys.mac.system on Wednesday, August 07, 2024 08:46:54
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.system


    In the up-coming new versions of macOS, Apple has reportedly removed
    the Control / right click option to us Open to bypass Gatekeeper to
    open apps (not that it always worked anyway). Supposedly the Privacy & Security System Settings panel still allows you to bypass it though and
    it may also still be possible via a Terminal command.

    Could be just a hiccup in the latest beat version or it could be a
    permananet change.


    Apple removes Control-click option for skipping
    Gatekeeper in macOS Sequoia
    -----------------------------------------------
    Gatekeeper gets more strict in macOS Sequoia.

    You'll no longer be able to override Gatekeeper in
    macOS Sequoia with a keyboard shortcut as Apple
    continues to crack down on unsigned software.

    If you try to install apps on macOS that haven't
    been signed or notarized, Gatekeeper gets in the
    way and won't let it run. Apple has removed an
    age-old shortcut for skipping the Gatekeeper prompt
    in macOS Sequoia.

    Until macOS Sequoia, users could hold Control and
    click on a freshly installed app to avoid
    Gatekeeper's warnings about running unsafe software.
    Now, users must navigate to System Settings then
    Privacy & Security to allow the app to run.

    It's a slight inconvenience for users trying to
    install apps from the web, but it doesn't prevent
    them from running the app. In fact, many installers
    include instructions or a direct link to the System
    Settings page, so the Control-click shortcut hasn't
    always been necessary.

    The change is likely meant to protect non-technical
    users from being instructed by malicious installers
    to bypass Gatekeeper. The extra steps requiring
    actions in System Settings can create a higher
    barrier to entry for such attack vectors.

    Apple, of course, recommends that any app destined
    for macOS that is distributed outside the App Store
    be notarized. The process scans the software for
    security risks and gives it a ticket for Gatekeeper
    to treat it as a trusted app.

    Some see this as a direct attack on web-sourced
    software that Apple is babying its customer base with
    nanny-like protections. In the end, it is just an
    extra step that could prevent someone from running
    malware and does nothing to stop people from running
    what they want on Mac.

    macOS Sequoia is due to release later in the fall. It
    could launch alongside iOS 18 shortly after the
    iPhone 16 announcement in September.


    <https://appleinsider.com/articles/24/08/06/apple-removes-control-click-option-for-skipping-gatekeeper-in-macos-sequoia>




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  • From Fishrrman@Fishrrman2000@yahoo.com to comp.sys.mac.system on Tuesday, August 06, 2024 23:01:33
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.system

    On 8/6/24 4:46 PM, Your Name wrote:
    You'll no longer be able to override Gatekeeper in
       macOS Sequoia with a keyboard shortcut as Apple
       continues to crack down on unsigned software.

    Seems to me that I was able to override it by opening
    terminal and then typing in
    sudo spctl --master-disable

    ... and entering my password afterwards.

    I dislike Apple interfering with what I can and can't run.
    Disabling Gatekeeper is one of the first things I do on any
    new Mac or OS install/upgrade.

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  • From Your Name@YourName@YourISP.com to comp.sys.mac.system on Wednesday, August 07, 2024 17:42:02
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.system

    On 2024-08-07 03:01:33 +0000, Fishrrman said:
    On 8/6/24 4:46 PM, Your Name wrote:

    You'll no longer be able to override Gatekeeper in
       macOS Sequoia with a keyboard shortcut as Apple
       continues to crack down on unsigned software.

    Seems to me that I was able to override it by opening terminal and then typing in
    sudo spctl --master-disable

    ... and entering my password afterwards.

    I dislike Apple interfering with what I can and can't run.
    Disabling Gatekeeper is one of the first things I do on any new Mac or
    OS install/upgrade.

    In earlier versions of macOS, you could simply use a System Preferences setting to allow apps from "anywhere" to be opened, but that got
    removed / hidden in later versions.

    Control / right click and choosing Open was a quick way of getting many
    apps to run when Gatekeeper interferred. Occassionally that didn't work either, so using the Terminal command to turn off Gatekeeper usually
    worked instead. (Once you've opened the 'naughty' app, you can always
    turn Gatekeeper back on using the Terminal command:
    sudo spctl --master-enable

    Things got a bit more difficult in newer versions of macOS with the SIP protection that can only be turned off via Terminal in Safe Boot mode.

    Apple is obviously tightening things up further. Eventually it will
    probably be like iOS / iPadOS and only allow apps to be installed form
    the official Apple App Store and the approved other app stores that new
    laws have forced Apple into allowing.



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  • From =?UTF-8?Q?J=C3=B6rg_Lorenz?=@hugybear@gmx.net to comp.sys.mac.system on Wednesday, August 07, 2024 08:10:24
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.system

    Am 07.08.24 um 07:42 schrieb Your Name:
    Things got a bit more difficult in newer versions of macOS with the SIP protection that can only be turned off via Terminal in Safe Boot mode.

    Apple is obviously tightening things up further. Eventually it will
    probably be like iOS / iPadOS and only allow apps to be installed form
    the official Apple App Store and the approved other app stores that new
    laws have forced Apple into allowing.

    That will be exactly when Apple runs the risk to lose a sizeable portion
    of its users including me.

    For a number of years I have Linux-machines as backups if Apple goes overboard. Apple as nanny is not needed and not wanted. The
    CSAM-desaster was also an eye-opener.

    Jörg
    --
    De gustibus non est disputandum
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  • From Alan Browne@bitbucket@blackhole.com to comp.sys.mac.system on Thursday, August 08, 2024 13:51:33
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.system

    On 2024-08-07 01:42, Your Name wrote:

    Apple is obviously tightening things up further. Eventually it will
    probably be like iOS / iPadOS and only allow apps to be installed form
    the official Apple App Store and the approved other app stores that new
    laws have forced Apple into allowing.

    I doubt it. Mac OS is a development platform too. Having such a policy
    and coding it into the OS would be a nightmare.

    Bypassing the control-click-option seems to be a speedbump to get people
    out of lazy habits and force them to think more before installing out-of-the-wilds apps.
    --
    "It would be a measureless disaster if Russian barbarism overlaid
    the culture and independence of the ancient States of Europe."
    Winston Churchill

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