macOS: How to Disable Rapid Security Response Software Updates - MacRumors
Skip to Content

macOS: How to Disable Rapid Security Response Software Updates

by

In macOS Ventura, Apple can deliver security updates to Macs without having to update the entire operating system. Keep reading to learn how it works and how you can disable it if you prefer.

Ventura Macs Feature Yellow
In the past, some of Apple's most important point releases of macOS have been linked to critical security updates that are designed to keep you and your private data safe and secure online.

Traditionally, one problem with these updates is that when a user opts to install them, the entire operating system must be updated and restarted.

In macOS 13‌ Ventura, Rapid Security Response is an option that can let you avoid the rigmarole of all that, allowing you to get important security improvements to your devices even faster, and have them applied automatically between standard software updates.

When you update to ‌macOS Ventura‌, Apple sets your Mac to install security updates automatically, but you can turn off the feature if you prefer. Here's how to do so.

  1. Click the Apple () symbol in your Mac's menu bar and select System Settings....
  2. Click General in the sidebar.
  3. Select Software Update from the menu.
  4. Click the encircled 'i' alongside Automatic Updates.
    settings

  5. Toggle off the switch next to Install Security Responses and System files.settings

That's all you need to do. From now on, your Mac will alert you to new security responses as they become available, with the option to install them manually.

Popular Stories

All Screen iPhone 2030 Feature Sans Text

iPhone 18 Pro: Nine Reasons Not to Upgrade This Year

Monday September 7, 2026 5:01 am PDT by
Apple is set to unveil new iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models on Wednesday, September 9, and the devices are expected to feature a design that's largely similar to the iPhone 17 Pro models, with a peppering of enhancements inside. Major changes are not expected until next year, when Apple is expected to introduce a radically redesigned 20th-anniversary iPhone. If you're thinking of...
apple watch series 12

Leak Hints at Four New Features for Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4

Monday September 7, 2026 8:57 am PDT by
Ahead of the announcement of the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 later this week, code in the watchOS 27 and iOS 27 betas points to a series of new features for the product line. The information comes from a new post from MacRumors forums member "pdfu." The findings include: New "Readiness" app: An all-new separate Watch app referred to in code as "Readiness," distinct from the...
iPhone 18 Pro Dark Cherry Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Reportedly Starts With 256GB of Storage

Thursday September 3, 2026 9:22 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro has double the base storage compared to the iPhone 16 Pro, there will apparently be no further increase this year. Taiwanese research firm TrendForce today again reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models will start with 256GB of storage, like the iPhone 17 Pro models. Minimum storage capacities by model:iPhone 16 Pro: 128GB iPhone 17 Pro: 256GB iPhone 18 Pro...