How To Stay As Private As Possible On The Mac

Whether you’ve just bought a MacBook Pro or are updating your Mac operating system software, it’s a good idea to stay on top of all of Apple’s latest updates, including how new features may assist or hamper your device security and online privacy.

There are many ways to lose information, and each one is a cause to back up your information regularly. Furthermore, downloading files and exchanging files with others is dangerous, and the number of threats aimed at Mac is increasing.

You can take many steps to improve your security and privacy, whether you use a personal computer or a public computer. Dive into this article to find out how to stay as private as possible on the Mac.

Don’t enable automatic login

You can set a user account to log in automatically at startup when you first set up a new Mac or when you undertake a clean installation of a new version of OS X. You might wish to do this at home. Still, if you travel with a laptop, this is a significant risk.

You can find the automatic login setting in the Users & Groups pane of System Preferences. However, this option is not available if you have FileVault enabled on your Mac. Also, if you use your iCloud password to log into your account, you won’t turn on automatic login.

Password Protect Important Folders

You might want to protect your favorite memories and important files from others. You can easily password protect important folders and save your important files from an impostor. To know more about how to password protect important folders on your system, hop on to https://setapp.com/.

  • Open Disk Utility on your Mac
  • Select “File” from the menu bar
  • Click on “New Image
  • In the ensuing menu, select “Image from Folder.”
  • Select the folder you want to protect with a password
  • Choose your encryption level
  • Enter and verify the password for your folder
  • Name the folder if desired
  • Under “Image Format,” select “read/write” from the menu
  • Select “Save

Keep your location private

Are you comfortable with disclosing your physical location with various apps that you use on your Mac? Do you even know which applications are receiving information about your location? If you are clueless about it, you might allow some apps to access your location without your knowledge.

To keep your location private, click the Security & Privacy icon, then click on the Privacy tab. To make changes to these settings, you may need to unlock the padlock by entering an administrator password. Once there, choose Location Services and view whether they are enabled and, if so, which apps can access your location.

Use Safari’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention

The information collected about you while you surf the web is one of the most significant risks to your privacy. Websites use trackers to collect data, identify users, and funnel your information into a profile that is sold and shared among advertisers.

Safari’s new Intelligent Tracking Prevention limits the amount of data that some websites can collect. To restrict the websites from collecting your data, go to Safari, click on Preferences and check privacy.

You can prevent cross-site tracking should be enabled (by default). If you disable this setting, you can see how many trackers are blocked, and it might be surprising for you to discover the number of trackers you encounter on the web.

Turn off your Wi-Fi connection’s auto-join feature

You don’t want your computer automatically joining any Wi-Fi network without your authorization. A hacker could use that same service set identifier as an access point to capture your traffic and data.

To turn off the auto-join feature, you have to click on the Apple menu icon, select System Preferences, and then click on Networks. Now you have to select the Wi-Fi you want to stop joining automatically.

Monitor your privacy settings

You might install apps that are only utilized for a brief period and then end up taking up space on your system. It’s a good idea to audit those apps regularly to optimize privacy. They may also represent a security risk, drain your power, and cause your device to slow down.

Click on the Apple menu icon > System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy. Here, you will come across a list of apps that have permission to your privacy. Please go through them and revoke any app permissions that aren’t necessary.

Conclusion

There are several ways to browse the internet anonymously. Whether you choose to surf in incognito mode or use Safari’s intelligent tracking system, it all depends on you.

We hope these tips and tricks will help you to stay as private as possible on the mac. Let us know in the comments if we have missed out on anything!

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