SMOG Documentation

Permissions Tutorial Video

Learn how to grant SMOG all the necessary permissions for microphone, accessibility, and system features in 2 minutes.

SMOG Permissions Setup

Duration: 2:20

2:20

Permissions You'll Grant

Microphone

For voice transcription and recording

Accessibility

For global keyboard shortcuts

Input Monitoring

For shortcut detection (macOS 13+)

Video Chapters

1

System Settings Overview

Navigate to Privacy & Security settings on your Mac

0:00 - 0:20
2

Grant Microphone Permission

Enable microphone access for voice features

0:20 - 0:50
3

Enable Accessibility Access

Allow SMOG to control system features and shortcuts

0:50 - 1:30
4

Input Monitoring (macOS 13+)

Grant input monitoring for newer macOS versions

1:30 - 2:00
5

Test & Verify

Confirm all permissions are working correctly

2:00 - 2:20

Step-by-Step Permission Guide

🎤

Microphone Permission

Required

Steps to enable:

  1. 1. Open System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS)
  2. 2. Click Privacy & Security in the sidebar
  3. 3. Select Microphone from the list
  4. 4. Find SMOG and toggle the switch to ON
  5. 5. If SMOG isn't listed, launch the app to trigger the permission request

💡 Why needed: SMOG uses your microphone to transcribe voice commands and create voice notes

👁️

Accessibility Permission

Required

Steps to enable:

  1. 1. Go to System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility
  2. 2. Click the lock icon 🔒 and enter your password
  3. 3. Click the "+" button to add an application
  4. 4. Navigate to Applications and select SMOG.app
  5. 5. Ensure the checkbox next to SMOG is checked ✓

💡 Why needed: Allows SMOG to detect global keyboard shortcuts and read screen content when Vision is enabled

⌨️

Input Monitoring

macOS 13+

Steps to enable:

  1. 1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Input Monitoring
  2. 2. Look for SMOG in the list
  3. 3. Toggle the switch to ON
  4. 4. If SMOG isn't listed, restart the app and it should appear
  5. 5. You may need to restart your Mac for changes to take effect

💡 Why needed: Required on newer macOS versions for keyboard shortcut monitoring

Troubleshooting Permission Issues

SMOG doesn't appear in permission lists

Solution:

  • • Launch SMOG first - macOS only shows apps that have requested permissions
  • • Try using a SMOG feature that requires permissions (like Quick Reply)
  • • Manually add SMOG using the "+" button in Accessibility settings
  • • Restart your Mac and launch SMOG again
  • • Check if SMOG is quarantined: run xattr -d com.apple.quarantine /Applications/SMOG.app
Permission granted but features still don't work
  • • Restart SMOG completely: Quit from menu bar, then relaunch
  • • Remove and re-add: Turn off the permission, wait 10 seconds, turn it back on
  • • Restart your Mac: Some permission changes require a full restart
  • • Check all permissions: Make sure ALL required permissions are granted, not just some
  • • Test step by step: Try microphone first, then shortcuts, then Vision features
macOS keeps asking for permissions repeatedly

Common on macOS updates or security changes

  • • Grant the permission each time it's requested
  • • Check if SMOG was moved or updated recently
  • • Verify SMOG's code signing: run codesign -dv /Applications/SMOG.app
  • • Consider adding SMOG to your firewall/security software whitelist
  • • Contact our support if the issue persists beyond 2-3 requests

Privacy & Security Notes

Why These Permissions Are Safe

Local Processing

All voice and screen data is processed locally on your Mac, never sent to servers

Limited Scope

SMOG only accesses microphone when actively recording, not continuously

User Control

You can revoke any permission at any time in System Settings

Encrypted Storage

Any stored voice data is encrypted using your Mac's security features

Permission Timing
  • • Grant all permissions at once - partial permissions cause confusion
  • • Restart SMOG after granting - ensures all features work properly
  • • Test immediately - verify shortcuts and voice features work as expected
  • • Be patient - some changes take 10-30 seconds to take effect

Next Steps

Permissions Complete!

Perfect! SMOG now has all the permissions it needs. Time to put it to work with your first Quick Reply.

Quick Reply Video

Try your first AI-powered voice reply (3 min)

Export Video

Learn to save and export voice notes (2 min)

Written Guide

Detailed permissions troubleshooting

Still having permission issues? Contact our support team for personalized troubleshooting help.