Permissions

Bubbly asks for one permission: Accessibility. Full Disk Access is optional — turn it on only if you want it. You turn both on yourself in System Settings, and Bubbly notices the moment you do. Either way, your notification content never leaves this Mac.

Menu names in System Settings differ slightly between macOS versions. This page uses the macOS 15 and 26 names and notes the others in parentheses.

Accessibility (required)

Why is it needed? Bubbly reads the notification banners that macOS Notification Center shows and redraws them the way you like. It moves the original banner off-screen to hide it, and passes the buttons you click and the replies you send on to the app that sent the notification. Only apps that macOS has allowed to use Accessibility can read and work with Notification Center's screen, so this permission is a must.

Where do I turn it on?

  1. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility (on macOS 27, "Device Control and Data Access"). The Open System Settings button in Bubbly's setup guide, or the Open Settings button in Bubbly Settings › Permissions, takes you straight there.
  2. Turn Bubbly on in the list. If it isn't listed, click the + button and add Bubbly from your Applications folder.
  3. Come back to Bubbly. It notices the moment you turn it on.

While it's off, Bubbly can neither read nor hide notifications. Settings › Permissions shows Permission Needed, and macOS notifications appear as usual.

Full Disk Access (optional)

Used for accurate app icons, History enrichment, and Quiet Mode. Everything else works without it, and you can turn it on later.

Quiet Mode shows notifications from apps whose "Desktop" delivery is off. It reads them from the notification database macOS keeps on this Mac, so they appear 5–6 seconds late. You can choose Quiet Mode only when Full Disk Access is on.

Where do I turn it on?

  1. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security › Full Disk Access. The Open Settings button in Bubbly Settings › Permissions opens it too.
  2. Turn Bubbly on in the list. If it isn't listed, click the + button and add Bubbly from your Applications folder, or drag the app icon shown in Bubbly's setup guide into the list.

Permissions Bubbly doesn't ask for

Bubbly doesn't ask for Screen Recording, Automation (Apple events), or Input Monitoring. Its three shortcuts (open, dismiss, or reply to the latest notification) are registered with macOS as key combinations, so Bubbly doesn't see any other keystrokes.

BubblyGuard

BubblyGuard is a small background helper that ships inside the Bubbly app. If Bubbly quits unexpectedly, it puts the hidden original banners back where they belong. It needs no privacy permission, but you do have to allow it once where macOS manages background items. It turns on only when Bubbly runs from your Applications folder.

Where do I allow it?

  1. Open System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions (on macOS 27, "Login Items").
  2. Turn Bubbly on in the "Allow in the Background" list (from macOS 26, "App Background Activity").
  3. If the BubblyGuard row in Bubbly Settings › Permissions says Running, you're set. If it says Needs Approval, click Open Settings at the end of the row.

How to remove Bubbly

  1. Quit Bubbly from the menu bar.
  2. To remove your notification history too, first clear it: in Bubbly Settings › History, click Clear All History….
  3. Move Bubbly from your Applications folder to the Trash. BubblyGuard lives inside Bubbly, so it goes with it.
  4. If Bubbly is still listed under Accessibility (on macOS 27, "Device Control and Data Access") or Full Disk Access in System Settings, select it and click the − button.