[macOS][Computer Use] App approval dialog never appears and Finder/Safari access is denied

What version of the Codex App are you using (From “About Codex” dialog)?

26.911.61220

What subscription do you have?

ChatGPT Plus

What platform is your computer?

Darwin 25.5.0 arm64 arm

What issue are you seeing?

Computer Use cannot control macOS applications because the app approval flow appears to fail.

I reproduced this with both Finder and Safari.

When I explicitly ask Computer Use to open Finder and request approval if necessary, Computer Use reports:

"Finder access was requested, but the tool returned that Finder operation is not approved."

However, no approval dialog is displayed, so there is no way for me to approve Finder.

Settings already verified:

ChatGPT > Settings > Computer Use:

• "Any app" is enabled.
• Use while Mac is locked is enabled.

macOS > Privacy & Security > Accessibility:

• ChatGPT: Enabled
• ChatGPT Classic: Enabled
• Codex Computer Use: Enabled

macOS > Privacy & Security > Screen & System Audio Recording:

• ChatGPT: Enabled
• ChatGPT Classic: Enabled
• Codex Computer Use: Enabled

Steps to reproduce:

1. Start a new Codex chat.
2. Invoke Computer Use.
3. Ask: "Open Finder. If approval is required to control Finder, request approval."
4. Computer Use requests access to Finder.
5. The tool reports that Finder operation is not approved.
6. No approval dialog appears.

The same behavior occurs with Safari.

Expected behavior:
An approval dialog should appear so that I can approve Finder/Safari, or the apps should be controllable when "Any app" is enabled.

Actual behavior:
Computer Use immediately reports that access to the application is not approved. No approval dialog appears, and the app cannot be added to the "Always allowed apps" list.

Possibly related:
Browser Use also has a permission-related problem on the same installation. When interacting with a local development site at http://127.0.0.1:5173, Browser Use returns:

"A saved user permission setting blocks this action"

This continues after explicitly allowing the origin in Browser site permissions, enabling full CDP access, clearing site data, restarting ChatGPT, and updating the desktop app.

I do not know whether these two issues share the same permission subsystem, but both permission failures occur on the same installation.

What steps can reproduce the bug?

1. Open the ChatGPT/Codex desktop app on macOS.
2. Go to Settings > Computer Use and enable "Any App".
3. Verify that ChatGPT and Codex Computer Use have Accessibility and Screen Recording permissions in macOS System Settings.
4. Start a new Codex chat.
5. Invoke Computer Use and ask:
   "Open Finder. If approval is required to control Finder, request approval."
6. Computer Use attempts to request access to Finder.
7. The tool returns that Finder operation is not approved.
8. No approval dialog appears, so there is no way to approve Finder.

The same issue can be reproduced with Safari.

I reproduced this multiple times, including in a completely new Codex chat.

What is the expected behavior?

When Computer Use attempts to control Finder or Safari for the first time, an approval dialog should appear so I can allow access.

Since "Any App" is enabled in Settings > Computer Use, the requested application should then become controllable after approval.

The approved application should also be able to appear under the "Always Allowed Apps" section.

Instead, no approval dialog appears and Computer Use immediately reports that the application is not approved.

Additional information

Additional troubleshooting already performed:

• Updated the ChatGPT/Codex desktop app to the latest available version.
• Completely restarted the ChatGPT desktop app.
• Verified macOS Accessibility permission for ChatGPT, ChatGPT Classic, and Codex Computer Use.
• Verified macOS Screen & System Audio Recording permission for ChatGPT, ChatGPT Classic, and Codex Computer Use.
• Verified that "Any App" is enabled in ChatGPT > Settings > Computer Use.
• Reproduced the issue in a completely new Codex chat.
• Reproduced the issue with both Finder and Safari.
• Explicitly instructed Computer Use to request approval if approval was required, but no approval dialog appeared.

App version: 26.911.61220
Release: Sep 17, 2026
Platform: Darwin 25.5.0 arm64 arm

I can provide screenshots of the macOS permission settings and the failed Computer Use approval flow if needed.

Start with the Computer Use approval flow and macOS permission handling; the issue provides reproduction steps for Finder and Safari but names no source files or tests. Trace the path from an approval request to the reported “not approved” result, then verify that a dialog appears and the approved apps become controllable and eligible for the “Always Allowed Apps” list.