Microsoft clarifies Windows 11 AI agents need permission to read your files

Back in October, Microsoft released a new support page for Experimental Agentic Features, which details how AI agents and agent connectors work with Windows 11, Copilot, etc. Recently, that page was updated to say that AI agents would be able to access the contents of six select folders in Windows 11—Documents, Downloads, Desktop, Music, Pictures, Videos—which understandably raised concerns.

Now, Microsoft clarifies that you’ll need to give your permission for AI agents to access the contents of those six folders. When selecting permissions, you’ll have options for “Allow Always” (the agent can access these folders whenever it needs to), “Ask Every Time” (you’ll be prompted when the agent needs access to the folders), and “Never Allow” (the agent will be denied the request every time).

Note that it isn’t possible to allow individual access settings per folder. The setting applies to all six folders or none of them.

To change the setting, open the Settings app in Windows 11, then navigate to System > AI Components > Agents. Select the relevant AI agent from the list, navigate to the Files section, then select one of the three permission settings from the drop-down menu.