Substage needs two macOS permissions to work with your Finder windows: Accessibility and Automation. Here’s what each one does.
Substage uses Accessibility to know where your Finder window is, so it can dock underneath and follow it as you move or resize it.
It detects when Finder windows are opened, moved, resized, or closed, and reads their position and size. Substage does not use Accessibility to read file contents, monitor typing, or control other apps — only Finder window geometry and basic state.
Substage uses Automation (Apple Events) to ask Finder which files and folders you have selected, and which folder the frontmost window is showing.
It gets the paths of selected items and the current folder path. Substage does not read file contents via Automation — only paths. Actual work happens locally via Terminal commands.
For more information about privacy and what data Substage shares with AI providers, see the Privacy and AI section.
You can turn these permissions on or off anytime in System Settings → Privacy & Security. Without them, Substage won’t be able to attach to Finder windows or see your file selections.