Apple Mail PDF attachment permissions issue

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Level 1

17 points

Apple Mail PDF attachment permissions issue

One of the users in my company has encountered an annoying issue in Outlook (but there are similar questions related to macmail here so I guess this is a general issue).

I've no idea how to fix.

Whenever I attempt to open a PDF attachment, I receive an error message saying The file "<filename>.PDF" couldn't be opened because you don't have permission to view it. To view or change permissions, select the item in the Finder and choose File > Get Info."

In order to open the attachment, I have to save it to a folder first, which is a pain in the butt.

I've taken a look in System Prefs and Prefs in Mail, but I cannot for the life of me find where to change this setting.

Does anybody have any suggestions?

N.B. The solution is not to save the pdf first, it should work just clicking on the pdf in the mail. The user does not have any issues with other attachements.

Posted on Jun 2, 2022 6:07 AM

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Answer 1

Jun 7, 2022 1:00 AM in response to Rod Miller

We have the same problem on multiple computers, most probably after upgrading from macOS 11.6.5 to macOS 11.6.6 ("Big Sur"):

I´d appreciate any advice/help.

I´ll try to upgrade to macOS 12.4 ("Monterey"), where possible – according to yet Monterey-unsupported SW.

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Answer 2

Jun 2, 2022 6:05 PM in response to webguide

This is very annoying. It appeared after a recent Big Sur update (not sure which) in Mail pdf attachments, maybe other file types as well. I've read the fixes. Adding Preview to Full Disk Access had no affect. Force quitting Preview or moving the attached pdf file to the desktop or a folder works but needs to be done each time. I don't want to use the Adobe or Safari apps as the defalt to open pdf files. None of them fix really the problem associated with Mail and Preview. So, I'll be watching for something that works to fix the problem, not just open the file.

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Answer 3

Jun 9, 2022 3:44 AM in response to atelier522

Unfortunately, my late 2013 MBP cannot upgrade to Monterey. I know, maybe it's time for a new computer but this one isn't broken, just this annoying attachment problem with Mac Mail . . . so if anyone with Big Sur (11.6.6) has a fix, please respond. Thanks!

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