Keep people off your Mac when you walk away from your desk

Why it happens

Your Mac can wait a few minutes after the screen goes dark before it asks for a password again. Anyone who wakes it in that window gets straight in. Asking for the password immediately, and locking the Mac yourself when you leave, closes that gap.

How to fix it

1. Click the Apple menu, choose System Settings, then click Lock Screen in the sidebar.

2. Find Require password after screen saver begins or display is turned off and choose Immediately from its pop-up menu. Your Mac may ask for your password to confirm.

   Lock Screen›Require password after screen saver begins or display is turned off

3. On the same page, shorten the time before the screen turns off. On a MacBook, set Turn display off on battery when inactive and the power adapter one to a few minutes. A desktop Mac has a single Turn display off when inactive menu. That way the Mac locks itself soon if you forget.

   Lock Screen›Turn display off on battery when inactive

4. Each time you get up, press Control-Command-Q, or choose Lock Screen from the Apple menu. The screen locks at once and needs your password, Touch ID or Apple Watch to open again.

   Apple menu›Lock Screen

Still not fixed?

1. Prefer a flick of the mouse? Open Desktop & Dock, click Hot Corners… and choose Lock Screen for one corner. Moving the pointer into that corner locks the Mac.

   Desktop & Dock›Hot Corners…

2. Make sure the Mac doesn't sign in without a password after a restart. In Users & Groups, set Automatically log in as to Off.

   Users & Groups›Automatically log in as

3. If someone already knows your login password, change it in Users & Groups and keep the new one to yourself. A separate user account for anyone who needs the Mac keeps your things private.

4. If these settings are greyed out, a company or school may manage the Mac, so ask whoever looks after it. If the Mac still opens without a password after all this, contact Apple Support.