Official documentation
Technical Note TN2150: Using Secure Event Input Fairly
Apple Developer Documentation, Apple Developer Documentation Archive, n.d.
Read the originalRead on October 17, 2026
- What it is
- Apple's developer note on EnableSecureEventInput, the macOS mode that stops keyboard-intercepting processes from seeing keystrokes while a protected field has focus. It explains when apps should turn the mode on and off.
- How much weight it carries
- Official Apple document, but marked as archived and no longer updated, so it describes older macOS behavior. It is a developer note for app authors, not a user guide, and it does not say how Dictation behaves in every password field.
Facts taken from this source
- Apple's developer note says a process should never enable secure event input for general text input, and should turn it on only when it is needed.
“A process should never enable secure event input for general text input or just enable this function for the life of the application.” (Summary)