Keybase adds itself to Finder favorites without explanation or permission; repeatedly adds itself back after manual removal

[webster]

After installing Keybase and restarting the app or computer, Keybase has added itself to the Finder sidebar, at the very top. This was done (a) without permission – user is not prompted about this change; and (b) without explanation – user is not informed what this is, what it's for, or why/how to use it. After manually removing it from Finder's sidebar, Keybase then re-adds itself to Finder's sidebar. There appear to be no preferences/configuration options to change the behavior.

Steps to reproduce:

1. Observe "Keybase" in macOS Finder sidebar

2. Remove "Keybase" from macOS Finder sidebar

3. Observe "Keybase" was successfully removed

4. Restart computer or restart Keybase app

5. Observe "Keybase" re-appears in Finder sidebar

6. Open "Keybase"

7. Observe "private" and "public" folder with no explanation on what they are for

macOS 10.12.5
Keybase GUI Version: 1.0.24-20170619144856+91a6943

[sdsykes]

This is hugely annoying.

[vandrijevik]

Can this behavior please be removed? The fact that the Keybase client never asks for permission from the user before adding itself to the very visible Favorites sidebar, along with the fact that it silently adds itself even after the user removes the shortcut, make this behavior quite unfriendly to the user.

I don’t believe that this is the intended effect, or that Keybase wants to take away the choice a user should have in managing their own favorites, so I consider this a bug.

[LloydThinks]

It has been almost a year and this functionality is still here. I'm just going to assume that the developers are ignoring this request and leaving the invasive functionality in place.

Any updates or responses to the contrary?

[dabura667]

If you plug in a USB memory stick multiple times doesn't it do the same thing?

On boot, Keybase mounts kbfs so you can use your encrypted file storage.

Essentially plugging in a virtual USB memory on boot.

[LloydThinks]

Plugging in a USB memory stick multiple times does not add itself to my favourites in finder.

I understand the need to mount the encrypted storage, which will appropriately appear as a volume on my computer. I don't understand the need for it to appear in my favourites.

See the attached photo. Notice the two mounted volumes: my USB storage and Keybase (no issue here), and then my finder favourites: Keybase, but no USB storage.

I am fully aware that I can remove Keybase from finder favourites by dragging it out of the sidebar (which I do, every time my computer restarts), but why is this not an option in Keybase? Does macOS require that mounted encrypted volumes appear in finder favourites when they mount? Seems unlikely.

[rtoohil]

This has been bugging me for a while, so this morning I decided to look at the source.

I don't know Obj-C very well, but I think I at least worked out the bug and I've restarted Keybase and the sidebar favorite did not come back.

If you look in ~/Library/Application Support/Keybase, there's a handful of config files. I think Keybase is looking for finder_disabled.config. Write out finder_disabled.config to ~/Library/Application Support/Keybase (with any value), and I think keybase will cease to create the shortcut.

This is a workaround to the problem that I don't think anything in Keybase actually writes out that config file (there seem to be a handful of config files that the code conflates, which I think is the underlying problem).

[sdsykes]

These days, as I am only using keybase for messaging, I just ignore / cancel its attempts to install its plugin whenever it restarts. This is a super simple way to stop it trying to install anything in your finder sidebar. Or mount the volume at all for that matter.

[redoPop]

rtoohil's workaround (and others) did not work for me. I ended up installing mysides through Homebrew to remove the Keybase Favorite:

brew cask install mysides
mysides remove Keybase

[cdzombak]

Here's a little tool which builds on @redoPop's suggestion to keep it removed permanently: https://github.com/cdzombak/remove-keybase-finder-favorite

[fharper]

Super annoying even if now I use Keybase only once in a while. @rtoohil tricks did it for me, thanks!