Scheduled automations cannot complete time-sensitive browser workflows because final actions require action-time confirmation

What variant of Codex are you using?

Codex Desktop on Windows, using a scheduled task with Browser/Computer Use.

What feature would you like to see?

Please add a supported, narrowly scoped, one-shot pre-authorization for time-sensitive scheduled browser actions, or clearly warn during task creation that these workflows cannot complete unattended.

Problem

The official documentation describes scheduled tasks as running unattended:

https://learn.chatgpt.com/zh-Hans/docs/automations

In practice, a scheduled task whose only purpose is to submit a form or reserve a scarce slot at a precise release time cannot finish when the final action requires action-time confirmation.

In the reported scenario:

• The user explicitly requested unattended execution.
• The destination, account, exact target, execution time, and one-submission limit were fixed in advance.
• No payment was involved.
• Codex verified the login and target, then prepared the page before the release time.
• The user might not be at the computer when registration opened.
• The final confirmation requirement meant that Codex could not submit at the critical moment.

For this class of workflow, the confirmation is not merely extra friction: it defeats the task's purpose. The automation becomes little more than a reminder, while the user specifically chose automation because a delayed click could lose the slot.

Desired behavior

At scheduled-task creation time, offer a reviewable and revocable one-shot authorization scoped to:

• the exact destination/domain
• the selected account
• the exact action and target
• the permitted execution window
• a maximum submission count
• an explicit expiry

Codex should execute only if the page and action still match the approved scope, record the action in an audit log, and stop for fresh confirmation if it encounters payment, changed terms, a CAPTCHA, credential prompts, a broader sensitive-data scope, or any materially different action.

If product policy intentionally does not allow this, the task-creation UI should say so before creating the automation: "This workflow will require you to be present at execution time." Codex should not create an unattended task that is guaranteed to stop at its only time-critical action.

Additional information

Related issues:

• https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/42349
• https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/39207

This report intentionally omits the student's name, identifier, password, school, website URL, screenshots, and all other private information.

Start by reading the linked scheduled-automations documentation and the related issues 42349 and 39207, then locate the scheduled-task and Browser/Computer Use entry points. Done means either a narrowly scoped, reviewable one-shot authorization with the listed safety checks and audit logging, or a task-creation warning that unattended completion is not supported.