Grant File access AcrobatUtils.scpt on Mac OS

Fred 0 Reputation points
2024-09-24T04:39:30.4133333+00:00

I recently updated MS Office and Mac OS. When I attempt to open any Word document into MS Word, I am greeted with a Grant File Access permission request, which I cannot cancel out. The only way to dismiss this popup is to force quit MS Word. Why is MS Word requiring access to the AcrobatUtils.script, which ironically is in the com.microsoft.Word folder. Why can’t MS Word access its own folder and why does it need my permission? Is this a legitimate request?

BTW, MS Excel is also requesting access to the same script.

Below is the text from the Grant File Access popup:

"Additional permissions are required to access the following files:

/Users/*/Library/Application/Application Scripts/com.microsoft.Word/AcrobatUtils.scpt**

Microsoft Word needs access to the file named AcrobatUtils.scpt

A macro in the file 'linkCreation.dotm' is requesting this access. Grant access only if you trust this file and its macros."

Since I am a digital designer, I have Adobe Creative Cloud installed on my system that I keep up to date. BTW, I can import an MS Word file into Adobe InDesign without any issues or Grant Access Request. Also, I can open up any MS Word document via the Mac Pages.app and any MS Excel file into the Mac Numbers.app without any issues or Grant Access Request.

Here are the current MS Office and Mac versions:

MS Word version: 16.89.1

MS Excel version: 16.89.1

Mac OS version: Ventura 13.6.9

Word
Word
A family of Microsoft word processing software products for creating web, email, and print documents.
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Excel
Excel
A family of Microsoft spreadsheet software with tools for analyzing, charting, and communicating data.
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Office Mac
Office Mac
Office: A suite of Microsoft productivity software that supports common business tasks, including word processing, email, presentations, and data management and analysis.Mac: A family of Apple personal computers that run the macOS operating system.
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  1. Emi Zhang-MSFT 24,756 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor
    2024-09-24T08:24:23.1133333+00:00

    Hi,

    Try to uninstall Office for Mac complete from mac:

    https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/troubleshoot-office-for-mac-issues-by-completely-uninstalling-before-you-reinstall-ec3aa66e-6a76-451f-9d35-cba2e14e94c0

    Then re-install Office for mac and stop updating, Just checking in to see if the problem is related to the update for Office.

    If the response is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and upvote it.

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  2. John Korchok 5,326 Reputation points
    2024-09-24T19:06:09.6666667+00:00

    This issue is caused by a new install routine that Adobe has created to enable PDF creation from within Office. Acrobat installs a macro-enabled template linkcreation.dotm that calls their script AcrobatUtil.scpt. Apple's sandboxing limitations raise the message requiring you to grant access. There's nothing in this process that Microsoft can fix.

    If Emi Zhang's suggestion does not help, please post your question at the Acrobat Community forum: https://community.adobe.com/t5/acrobat/ct-p/ct-acrobat?page=1&sort=latest_replies&lang=all&tabid=all

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