How to capture Apple TV traffic with Charles Proxy

Updated July 20, 2026

To inspect HTTPS traffic from an Apple TV you need two things on the device: an HTTP proxy pointing at your Mac and the Charles root certificate in the trusted store. tvOS exposes neither in Settings — both are applied with a configuration profile. ProxyBeam, a free Mac app, builds that profile from your Charles certificate: install it once on the Apple TV, enable SSL Proxying in Charles, and requests show up decrypted. One prerequisite: the Apple TV must be supervised — a one-time setup with Apple Configurator on a Mac, which erases the device first.

Save the Charles root certificate

In Charles on your Mac, choose Help → SSL Proxying → Save Charles Root Certificate… and save it in the .cer format.

Generate the profile in ProxyBeam

Download ProxyBeam (free, macOS 15+), open it and drag the .cer file into the window. The app starts a local server and copies a link like http://192.168.x.x:PORT/proxy.mobileconfig to your clipboard.

Install the profile on Apple TV

Open Settings → General → Privacy & Security, highlight Share Apple TV Analytics, press Play/Pause on the remote, choose Add Profile and enter the link. The Apple TV must be supervised — a one-time setup with Apple Configurator. Details and tips: how to install a configuration profile on Apple TV.

Trust the certificate

Go to Settings → General → About → Certificate Trust and enable trust for Charles Proxy CA.

Enable SSL Proxying in Charles

In Charles choose Proxy → SSL Proxying Settings…, tick Enable SSL Proxying and add a location with host * and port 443 to decrypt all hosts — or list specific hosts. Keep Charles running on its default port 8888, on the same Wi-Fi as the Apple TV.

If something goes wrong

The profile won't install. Profiles that set a device-wide proxy are only accepted on a supervised Apple TV. Supervise it once with Apple Configurator on a Mac — this erases the device first — then try again. Only CONNECT lines, nothing readable. SSL Proxying isn't enabled for that host — add it in Proxy → SSL Proxying Settings. No internet on the Apple TV. While the profile is installed, the Apple TV's HTTP(S) traffic goes through Charles — if it isn't running, most apps lose connectivity. Start Charles, or delete the profile in Settings → General → VPN & Device Management. Traffic stopped appearing. Your Mac's IP most likely changed. ProxyBeam picks up the new address automatically — generate the profile again and reinstall it.