"I have been getting this message on macOS since May 14, 2026. At first, it would go away after the first click of 'Don't Allow,'" one user said, describing repeated, undismissible location-permission dialogs from Microsoft Teams.
User reports: persistent prompts began surfacing on May 11
Reports of non-dismissible location prompts in the Microsoft Teams app on macOS first surfaced on May 11, according to Microsoft. Affected users describe a dialog that asks for permission to use their location "for things like GPS and Wi‑Fi" and, in some cases, reappears immediately after clicking "Don't Allow." One user reported clicking "Don't Allow" at least twenty times in succession while the dialog continued to return.
Microsoft incident report TM1315837: a macOS update prevents storing selections
Microsoft acknowledged the behavior in a new incident report (TM1315837) and attributed the problem to a "recent macOS security update" that "doesn't store users' location permission selections for Teams as expected, resulting in repeated location prompts." Microsoft noted the issue is known and is investigating two parallel paths: working with Apple to better understand the change and identifying a Teams-side mitigation.
The company also said the issue affects only certain Microsoft Teams users on Mac who have enabled location access in their Teams settings, and it has not published figures for affected regions or the number of impacted users. Microsoft flagged the incident as an advisory, a label it commonly uses for service issues of limited scope or impact.
Workaround: how to set Location Services for Microsoft Teams on macOS
Until Microsoft and Apple resolve the underlying behavior, the company recommends a manual workaround using macOS system settings. The exact steps Microsoft provided are:
- Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services.
- Locate "Microsoft Teams" and "Microsoft Teams ModuleHost."
- Toggle them on and off, then set them back to the desired setting.
Microsoft emphasized that the issue only appears for Mac users who have enabled location access in their Teams settings; the workaround is presented as a temporary measure while a more permanent fix is developed.
Context: Teams service activity and recent fixes
Microsoft's advisory comes amid a string of recent Teams service interventions. In recent weeks the company began rolling out a fix for a known issue that prevented some Microsoft Teams Free users from chatting and calling others. It also addressed an issue that blocked Windows users from joining Teams meetings due to a bug introduced by a recent Microsoft Edge browser update, and it reverted a service update that had blocked some customers from launching the Teams desktop client.
Those separate actions show Microsoft actively tracking and remediating multiple, targeted problems affecting different portions of the Teams user base; the company has characterized the current macOS prompt problem as limited enough to be treated as an advisory rather than a broader outage.
What this means for end users, IT administrators, and Microsoft
- End users: Mac users seeing the dialog should follow Microsoft's workaround to manually set Location Services for "Microsoft Teams" and "Microsoft Teams ModuleHost," or avoid enabling location access in Teams until Microsoft provides a fix.
- IT administrators and enterprises: Administrators should be aware the problem only affects Macs with location access enabled in Teams and may need to guide users through the System Settings workaround or temporarily adjust policies around Teams location permissions.
- Microsoft: The company is pursuing dual tracks—collaboration with Apple to understand the change in macOS behavior and an internal Teams fix to mitigate repeated prompts—while monitoring reports that began on May 11 and investigating the scope of impact.
The mechanics of the problem are narrow but intrusive: a macOS security update is preventing the operating system from storing a user's decision, and the result is a dialog that returns even after repeated denials. Microsoft and Apple are now the principal actors to resolve whether the permanent solution will come from a macOS behavior change, a Teams update, or both. For affected users, the immediate step is administrative: follow Microsoft's System Settings guidance or suspend Teams location access until the company delivers its mitigation.
Read the original report from BleepingComputer: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-blames-undismissible-teams-location-prompts-on-macos-update/
