macOS microphone and screen recording permissions for interview apps

Grant the permissions, step by step

1. Open the interview app once so macOS registers it, and accept the microphone prompt.
2. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security › Microphone and confirm the app is switched on.
3. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security › Screen & System Audio Recording (Screen Recording on older macOS).
4. Switch the app on; if it is missing, use the + button and add it from Applications.
5. Quit the app completely (Command-Q) and reopen it.
6. Join a test call and check that the other person's words appear as captions.

Where the settings live on each macOS version

On recent versions macOS may also show periodic reminders asking whether an app should keep recording access. Confirming keeps things working; ignoring or denying it is a common reason a setup that worked last month suddenly hears nothing.

Why an interview app needs screen recording

The name sounds alarming for an audio tool. On macOS, capturing the sound other apps are playing is grouped with screen capture under one permission, so an app that needs the interviewer's voice must request it even if it never looks at your screen. Apps that offer screenshot features for coding questions use the same permission for that. Apple's own guide to controlling screen and system audio recording access describes this grouping.

Fixes when the interviewer isn't captioned

• Relaunch the app. The screen and audio permission is read at launch; switching it on while the app runs changes nothing until restart.
• Remove stale entries. If you moved or updated the app, an old entry may be enabled while the new copy is not. Remove both with the − button and add the app again from Applications.
• Run it from Applications, not from the Downloads folder or a disk image, so macOS treats it as one consistent app.
• Check the output device. If the call plays through a headset but the system output is set elsewhere, the app may be listening to the wrong device.
• Restart the Mac if permissions look correct but nothing changes; the privacy database occasionally needs it.

Your microphone is fine but you are not captioned

If the interviewer appears but you do not, check the input device in the app and in System Settings › Sound › Input. Meeting apps can switch the system input when you join a call. Also confirm no other app has exclusive use of an audio interface, which some recording software does.

Check it the day before, not the hour before

Permission problems tend to surface at the worst moment: after a macOS update, after the app updates itself, or after a periodic reminder you dismissed. Build a two-minute check into the day before each interview. Open the app, join a short test call with a friend or play a video with speech through your headset, and confirm captions appear for the other voice and for yours. If anything is off, you have time to relaunch, re-add the app or restart the Mac without the pressure of a waiting interviewer.

Keep macOS updates for after your interview week if you can. Major upgrades occasionally reset or re-prompt privacy permissions, and an update that needs a restart at the wrong moment is avoidable.

Privacy: what these permissions allow

Granting screen and audio recording lets an app capture what your Mac shows and plays while it runs, so grant it only to software you trust and remove it from apps you no longer use. Read how a tool handles that data — whether audio, screenshots or transcripts are stored and where. See interview tool privacy policies compared.

Where CoPilot Interview fits

CoPilot Interview, a free AI interview assistant for macOS 12 and later and Windows, asks for exactly these two permissions on first launch. Microphone is enough for mock interviews; the screen and system audio permission is needed for live captions of another person and for coding screenshots. Audio is not stored on our servers. The full walkthrough is in the Mac setup guide.

Disclosure: CoPilot Interview is our product, so weigh what we say about it accordingly. Everything else on this page applies whichever tool you use, or none.

Frequently asked questions

Why does an interview app need screen recording permission on Mac?

Because macOS groups capturing other apps' sound with screen capture under one permission. An app must hold it to hear the interviewer's voice from the call, even if it never captures your screen.

Where is screen recording permission on macOS Sequoia?

System Settings › Privacy & Security › Screen & System Audio Recording. Switch the app on, then quit and reopen it for the change to take effect.

I granted permission but the app still can't hear the call. Why?

Usually the app was not relaunched, or an old copy of the app holds the permission. Quit the app, remove and re-add it in the permission list, open it from Applications and test again.

Do I need screen recording permission for practice only?

Not usually. Mock interviews only need the microphone. The screen and system audio permission is for hearing another person on a call and for screenshot features.