CompTIA Tech+ (FC0-U71)Applications and SoftwareMedium
A technician is troubleshooting a macOS computer where the user reports that recently installed applications are not launching, and they receive a message indicating the application cannot be opened because it is from an unidentified developer. The technician needs to allow these specific applications to run without compromising the overall security settings of the operating system. Which action should the technician take?
- ARun the 'sudo spctl --master-disable' command in Terminal.
- BRight-click (or Control-click) the application icon and choose 'Open'.
- CMove the application to the Applications folder and restart the computer.
- DDisable Gatekeeper entirely in System Settings.
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Right-click (or Control-click) the application icon and choose 'Open'.
macOS Gatekeeper prevents applications from unidentified developers from running. The recommended way to bypass this for a specific, trusted application without disabling Gatekeeper entirely is to right-click (or Control-click) the application icon and choose 'Open'. This action presents an option to confirm that you want to open the application, adding an exception for it.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. The 'sudo spctl --master-disable' command completely disables Gatekeeper, which is not recommended for maintaining overall security.
- C. Moving the application to the Applications folder is a common installation step but does not bypass Gatekeeper's 'unidentified developer' block.
- D. Disabling Gatekeeper entirely would reduce the overall security of the macOS system, which goes against the requirement to not compromise overall security.
macOS Gatekeeper Bypass (Specific App)
A method to open a specific application from an 'unidentified developer' on macOS without disabling the Gatekeeper security feature system-wide.
- Right-click (or Control-click) the application icon.
- Select 'Open' from the contextual menu.
- Confirms intent to run the application, creating an exception.
Memory trick: Gatekeeper guards the gate; 'Open' with a right-click lets one through.