Meta Strengthens Muse Warnings After Security Flaw

Meta’s Muse AI agent faces scrutiny after Inc. columnist Jason Aten said it accessed private Messages conversations without his permission and that he found evidence it synced more than 187,000 rows from his local database. Meta says accessing Messages requires users to enable both Full Disk Access and Muse’s Messages connector, and a company executive cited app and macOS safeguards; the dispute has raised questions about transparency and trust. Separately, Meta launched Muse for Small Business to help entrepreneurs with customer communications, marketing, websites, cash flow and inventory, connecting it to Meta accounts and third-party business software. Meta has described the service as free with usage limits and paid subscription options, while executives have discussed potential fees and subscriptions; the offering extends Muse’s reach among roughly 200 million businesses on Meta’s platforms. Muse can use connected information to support business operations, but owners must approve actions that publish content, send messages or spend money. The launch is part of Meta’s effort to expand business AI and diversify revenue beyond advertising, though adoption and monetization remain uncertain.