Authorize Permissions Safely

You clicked the START HERE button and Google threw up a screen saying "This app isn't verified." Your stomach probably dropped a little. That reaction is completely normal — and completely unnecessary. This is, without question, the safest-feeling-scariest step in all of Money Mastery.

Here's the honest reason this warning exists: the script running behind your Money Mastery navigation, your categorization tools, your split-transaction panel, and your Account Upload flow was built specifically for Money Mastery users. It was never submitted to Google's public app-review process, because it isn't a public app — it's yours. Google flags anything outside that review process as "unverified," regardless of how safe it actually is. Think of it less like an alarm and more like a receptionist asking to see your badge before letting you through a door that was always going to open for you anyway.

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When You'll See This

This screen appears the very first time you set up a system, and it's handled the same way every time:

• The first time you click the START HERE button to begin registration. Before your welcome window can open, the sheet needs Google's permission to run — so Google steps in here first. Grant it, and your registration window opens right up.
• Occasionally after a system update, when we've added something new and your sheet needs to check back in with Google one more time.

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Step-by-Step: The Exact Click Path

1. Click the button that triggered the request
   On day one, this is the START HERE button you pressed to begin registration. Later, it might be the navigation menu or another feature button. Whatever you clicked, the authorization sequence that follows is identical.
2. A window titled "Authorization Required" appears
   This is Google speaking to you directly, not Money Mastery.
   Click Continue
3. Choose your Google account
   A list of accounts may appear, or you may be prompted to sign in. Select the account tied to your Money Mastery purchase. If you only ever use one Google account, this step will feel instant. If you juggle several, this is the click to slow down on.
4. You'll land on the "unverified app" screen
   A screen with a warning message and a shield-style icon. Do not close it, and do not click the blue "Back to safety" button — that exits the process entirely and sends you back to where you started.
   Do NOT click "Back to safety"
   Instead, look toward the bottom-left corner for a small link labeled Advanced.
   Click "Advanced"
5. Click "Go to [tool name] (unsafe)"
   After clicking Advanced, new text appears — usually a link that reads something like "Go to [tool name] (unsafe)." That word "unsafe" is doing a lot of unnecessary emotional damage for a link that is completely fine to click. It only carries that label because this is a private script that never went through Google's public verification pipeline.
   Click that link
6. Review and grant the permissions
   A permissions screen loads listing what the script is asking to do:
   View and manage your spreadsheets and Drive files

   Reads your uploads, organizes your data, shows your dashboard

   See your email address

   Validates your access key

   Connect to outside services

   Validates your access key and files support tickets

   Run behind-the-scenes automation and display the tools panel

   Powers the navigation menu and all feature buttons

   Work with linked documents

   Connects Personal and Business systems when both are purchased
   Click Continue
7. Select All permissions if prompted
   A final screen may ask you to confirm. If you see a Select All option, use it. Partial permissions are the most common reason a button quietly stops working later — it's worth granting everything in this one pass rather than returning to fix it piece by piece.
   Select All → Confirm
8. The window closes on its own — you're done
   The moment this finishes, your sheet stops being a spreadsheet and starts being a system. On day one, your "Welcome to Money Mastery" registration window opens right up so you can enter your access key, name, and PIN.

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If You Were Registering When This Happened

Good news: nothing was lost while Google walked you through permissions. The instant authorization completes, your welcome registration window opens on its own — you don't need to go find anything or re-click START HERE. Just pick up your registration there:

• Enter your access key (the MM-… code from your welcome email)
• Enter your name
• Choose the PIN you'll use to get back in going forward

Once you finish the short welcome tour, the system opens your Dashboard automatically, and you won't need the START HERE tab again unless we notify you of an update.

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What to Check When You're Done

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A Few Things That Are Easy to Get Turned Around

• Wrong Google account selected mid-flow
  If tools still don't respond after finishing this walkthrough — or your registration seems tied to an account you didn't expect — the most likely cause is that a different Google account was selected somewhere in the middle. Repeat the steps above and pay close attention to Step 3.
• Browser tab closed before Steps 7–8
  If you leave before permissions are fully confirmed, the system may only have partial access — which shows up later as a button that "sometimes" works. If anything feels inconsistent, return here and run the full sequence once more, start to finish.
• Assuming the warning means something is wrong
  It doesn't. It means the tool is private, not public — a distinction Google draws for every custom script, including this one.
• Using a VPN
  Some VPNs quietly block the navigation menu from loading, even after a successful authorization. If your menu doesn't appear once you're done here, don't assume the permissions failed — you can still reach every tool through the hamburger menu (☰) in the bottom-left corner while you sort out your VPN settings.