Meta Denies Muse AI Read Private Messages Without Consent

Meta is disputing a claim by Inc. columnist Jason Aten that its AI agent Muse read his private messages without permission. Meta VP Andy Stone and executive David Singleton say the Messages integration requires three separate opt-in steps, including Full Disk Access and macOS system-level permissions, which cannot be bypassed even by a bug. Aten countered that Full Disk Access was off and that Muse told him it accessed messages via device notifications. Meta called that AI explanation incorrect. The dispute comes amid longstanding public skepticism over Meta's data practices, including a recent New Mexico jury verdict tied to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.