macOS apps appear on iPhone in “Always Allowed” section

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Level 1

6 points

macOS apps appear on iPhone in “Always Allowed” section

Hi everyone,

On my iPhone, under Settings > Screen Time > Always Allowed, I noticed several macOS-only applications listed — such as Disk Utility, Console, Image Capture, and others.

These apps are clearly not installed on my iPhone, and I’m not sure why they appear there. My Apple ID is also used on a Mac, but this strange list shows up directly on my iPhone.

No MDM profile is installed on the device. I checked in Settings > General > VPN & Device Management, and nothing is listed there.

Has anyone else experienced this? Is it a bug or some kind of sync artifact with macOS?

Thanks in advance for any insight!

[Edited by Moderator]

iPhone 15 Pro, iOS 18

Posted on Jul 12, 2025 12:52 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Janab3414

Level 1

26 points

Jul 12, 2025 1:05 PM in response to RomanKondr

Yes, I’ve seen this too — you're not alone.

This typically happens when the same Apple ID is used across both iPhone and Mac. The Screen Time settings sync across devices, and macOS apps (like Disk Utility, Console, etc.) may appear under Settings > Screen Time > Always Allowed on your iPhone, even though they’re not installed on the phone itself.

It’s not a sign of malware or a hack — more like a sync artifact or cross-platform bug in Apple’s Screen Time system. It doesn’t mean these apps are active or accessible on your iPhone.

What you can do:

You can safely ignore those macOS apps listed there.
Or, if it bothers you, turn off Screen Time sharing across devices:
Go to Settings > Screen Time > Share Across Devices and turn it off.
If needed, sign out of iCloud temporarily and back in to refresh sync data.

It’s a weird quirk, but thankfully harmless. Hope that helps! 👍

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Answer 2

xWauwau

Level 3

728 points

Jul 12, 2025 1:09 PM in response to RomanKondr

As Janab3414, suggested, this is probably related to the usage of the same Apple Account. Consider checking if Screen Time -> Share Across Devices is turned off, then turn off your iPhone, then on again. It is a somewhat weird bug (or feature), yet will not cause harm to any of your devices.

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