Safari No Longer Auto Opening PDF Files

I have always had my preferences set for pdf downloads to open in Preview and open automatically on download.

Nothing has changed except the update to Big Sur that was released May 16. Ever since, they do not open automatically and instead I get a pop up telling me I don't have permissions to read it (which I do.)

I CAN open them from the desktop, its just an annoying extra step and obviously something wrong that generates the no permission error message.

BTW, I just got another one in an email (this time a JPG) with the same error message, while I can actually see and read it in the body of the email AND I can open it from the desktop.

This is being generated as it downloads to desktop and tries to auto-open.

Thanks!

Thanks for trying to help, ado_apple, but I did Disk Repair with no issues and booted into Safe Mode several times with really strange experience (I've been a Mac user for 30 years and never had this):

Boot into Safe Mode

Try to open a pdf or png from inside an email

Preview launches and then the whole screen freezes. The mouse is movable but highlights and can click nothing;

Then the whole screen goes black for a second and takes me back to the Log In Screen!

I logged in again - still in Safe Mode.

It did this 3 times.

Finally it DID open the attachment from inside mail but froze again and took me back to the Login Screen.

This time I just restarted with no Safe Mode and it still will not let me open an attachment with Preview from inside an email (or opening automatically from a download).

I can drag onto desktop and open it just fine, but this is frustrating because I spend most of my work opening and printing attached pdf bills, etc.

I am the only user of this Mac and nothing at all has changed except the update to the Big Sur OS as reference in my original post above. No weird apps or updates or installs, no crazy emails or texts, etc.

Any ideas?

Thanks

Just an update if anyone has the same issue, Apple fixed this with the newest OS Big Sur update 11.6.7. (see attached screenshot)

It's all working now.

I just got an email from this discussion (but its not showing up here!) - from RichardGM2.

You do not have to do Safe Mode or anything else.

Just go to Apple in the upper left corner>System Preferences>Software Update. It might show you Monterey is available, but under that it should say there are more updates. If you click that "more updates" it should open the window I showed above that shows you there's a new Big Sur update 11.6.7 that fixes this issue.

You currently actually CAN open the previews from inside mail or a download, but you'd have to quit Preview each time.

This new update puts it back how its supposed to function - where a Preview opens from inside mail or as an auto download regardless of whether Preview was already running.

Try to install the Update 11.6.7 and see if it solves.

(and now your reply appeared in this discussion string - LOL)