Google Drive
Google Drive syncs files between your Mac and Google’s online storage, with access through Finder. It’s made by Google, based in the United States.
Criminals have used its name in fake downloads or scams, so get it only from support.google.com.
What it is
Google Drive for desktop lets you open cloud files through Finder and sync folders from your Mac. You can download files as needed or keep a complete local copy.
It reads and uploads files in folders you choose to sync. macOS may ask you to allow access to Documents, Desktop, Downloads or external drives. Changes sync between your Mac and Google Drive.
This is Google’s official desktop app for Drive. Check which folders you have selected for syncing. On newer macOS versions, moving a file out of the Drive folder can put its cloud copy in the bin.
Who makes it
Google is an American technology company founded in 1998 and owned by Alphabet. Its legal name is Google LLC. Its website is about.google.
Google makes other software with flaws that attackers have used. Its page in Companies lists them.
Is it the real one?
Every Mac app carries a signature from the developer who made it. Apple checks who the developer is before handing out the certificate, and macOS refuses to open an app whose signature has been tampered with.
HARD hasn’t yet recorded the signature on a real copy of Google Drive. Its Mac app shows who signed the copy you have.
Its bundle ID, the name macOS knows it by, is com.google.drivefs or com.google.GoogleDrive. Download it only from support.google.com, not from an ad or a link someone sends you.
Fakes. In April 2026, Security Alliance reported a fake Google Drive installer named GoogleDriver.dmg distributed through counterfeit Google Workspace pages. It delivered MacSync-family malware on Macs.
What it connects to
In normal use, Google Drive talks to these places on the internet. A firewall that asks before apps connect, like the one in HARD’s Mac app, will show them.
| Address | Why |
|---|---|
accounts.google.com | Google Account sign-in. |
drive.google.com | Access to Google Drive. |
*.googleapis.com | Google service requests. |
*.googleusercontent.com | Google-hosted file content. |
What it can see
macOS asks you before an app can use these. You can change them any time in System Settings → Privacy & Security.
| Permission | What it’s for |
|---|---|
| Files and Folders | Access folders you choose to sync, including Desktop, Documents, Downloads and removable or network volumes. |
| Accessibility | Show when other people are editing shared Microsoft Office files, if you enable real-time presence. |
| Bluetooth | Use a Bluetooth security key to sign in. |
| Photos | Older versions requested Photos library access for backup to Google Photos; Google has since removed that backup feature from Drive for desktop. |
Security record
Problems with Google Drive or Google in the last three years, newest first. Keeping the app up to date covers the ones that were fixed.
| When | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Researchers disclosed that Drive for Windows failed to mark some synced files as internet downloads, weakening Windows security checks; Google had declined a fix at disclosure, and the report concerned Windows rather than macOS. | ↗ | |
| Attackers stole business names and contact details from a Google corporate Salesforce database; Google cut off their access and began mitigations. | ↗ | |
| A Drive for desktop version 84 bug caused some users to lose unsynced local files; Google released a fix and recovery tool in version 85.0.13.0 in December. | ↗ |
References
- Google: Our story about.google
- Alphabet: Founders’ letter abc.xyz
- Google APIs Terms of Service developers.google.com
- Use Google Drive for desktop support.google.com
- Use Drive for desktop on macOS support.google.com
- Manage Google Drive for desktop: Advanced guide support.google.com
- Manage Drive for desktop updates for your users knowledge.workspace.google.com
- Google Drive for desktop release notes knowledge.workspace.google.com
- Drive and Sites firewall and proxy settings knowledge.workspace.google.com
- Jamf Community: Google Drive for desktop permissions and bundle identifier community.jamf.com
- Munki developer discussion: Legacy Google Drive application metadata groups.google.com
- Security Alliance: Infostealer malware campaigns targeting crypto radar.securityalliance.org
- Zero Day Initiative: Google Drive file-sharing security warning bypass zerodayinitiative.com
- Google Threat Intelligence: From voice phishing to data extortion cloud.google.com
- 9to5Google: Recovery for missing Drive files 9to5google.com