6 Mac Privacy Settings You Should Change

If you’ve bought a new Mac or want to control the settings you already have on your current Mac, here are six Mac privacy settings you need to change.

We mentioned some iPhone privacy settings that you should change, but we don’t want to forget about your Mac either, especially if you do all your work on the computer, as you can use your Mac a lot more than your iPhone.

While the iPhone and smartphones in general have been the center of many privacy debates over the years, many people forget about their Macs, but there are just as many privacy concerns on the Mac as there are on the iPhone.

It’s important to review your settings and change anything that might be useful to you, but if you’re not sure where to start, here are six Mac privacy settings you should change for some peace of mind.

file vault

Perhaps one of the most important privacy features on your Mac, FileVault encrypts your entire hard drive so even if your Mac is stolen and the thief can access the desktop, they cannot access your files without knowing your administrator password.

This is great for those who travel with their laptops and may risk theft. However, FileVault has some cons that you should be aware of.

First off, if you forget your password, there’s absolutely no way to access your files without completely reinstalling OS X, and you’ll lose them all if you haven’t backed up your Mac. Second, encryption takes up space, which means using FileVault will take up more space on your Mac than usual. It’s not a huge amount but you’re already short of space, so that’s something to keep in mind.

Visitor account

If a friend or family member needs to borrow your computer, you can let them switch to your main account and do what they have to do, but it’s best if they use the Guest account.

While these people can access your personal files, they also have the ability to download things to your Mac, but with a Guest account you can set restrictions so they can’t access your personal files and do certain things like download more. apps.

There probably won’t be many people willing to borrow your computer, but it’s something to run just in case.

Location Services

One of the most private things you have is your location, and sometimes your Mac needs to know your location for various things, and some apps need to know, especially Apple Maps on Mac, to give you a better experience.

However, some apps have access to your location that they don’t really need for anything, so it’s a good idea to review those apps and disable any that don’t need to know your location.

Simply go into it and then click on the top tab and select it from the sidebar. From here, disable any apps you don’t want to use your location.

Account password

Just like a password on your iPhone, it’s always a good idea to enable an account password on your Mac so that not everyone can access your files.

If you don’t have a password set for your Mac, you can use the .

Auto Login

Not only do you need to have a password on your Mac, but you also need to disable Auto Login if it’s enabled by default.

Auto-login essentially happens when you start your Mac, bypassing the login screen and going straight to your desktop. It’s much more private if you stop your Mac at the login screen instead.

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use a VPN

If you want to have extra privacy, your best bet is to get a VPN.

VPN stands for Virtual Private Network and essentially routes your traffic through a different IP address, so the unique information about your internet connection sent to website servers is masked and disguised like other information, keeping your original information safe.

VPNs are not free, but you can get a VPN service for around $5 per month. personally i like Private Internet Accessbut there are loads of other VPN services to choose from.