Using removable media, such as USB flash drives or removable disks, is a convenient way to transport information. However, if the removable media is lost or stolen, someone else can access its data by mounting the media on another computer.
If you want to keep private or confidential information secure on removable media, you need to encrypt the information on it.
WARNING: When you encrypt a disk or other media, the disk format is converted to the APFS format and then encrypted. Macs with earlier versions of macOS that don’t support the APFS format are not able to read the device’s data. Consider whether you need to connect the media to a Mac with an earlier version of macOS before you encrypt the data. You can also update your other Mac to the latest version of the macOS that supports the APFS format.
To protect your removable media with encryption:
• On your Mac, click the Finder icon in the Dock to open a Finder window
• In the sidebar, Control-click the item you want to encrypt
• Choose Encrypt [item name] from the shortcut menu
• Create a password for the disk and click Encrypt Disk
Be sure to record and keep this password in a safe place. You cannot access the data on the encrypted disk without it.
It may take some time to encrypt, depending on how much information is stored on your Mac. However, you can use your Mac as usual while the disk is being encrypted. To decrypt an encrypted disk, Control-click the disk you want to decrypt, then choose Decrypt [item name] from the shortcut menu.
Like most technology companies, Apple stores information about you on its servers. Unlike most technology companies, however, Apple does not store identifiable information such as locations, instant messages, and so forth. Thanks to Differential Privacy techniques, Apple can build smart services without using the cloud for insight, keeping information about each individual user completely private.
The list of personally identifiable things Apple knows about you is rather short compared to other technology companies. Identifiable information Apple knows about you includes the following:
• Apps you’ve downloaded
• A log of every time you updated your installed apps
• Movies, books, and other media you’ve downloaded
• All of the songs you’ve stored in iTunes Match
• In-app purchases you’ve made on your devices
• All the devices you’ve bought from Apple, along with their serial numbers
• A log of every AppleCare support query you’ve made
• A repair session log of what was damaged
• Serial numbers for both the old and replacement parts
Your archive does not contain identifiable data already included within your Apple ID account, such as calendar content, your iCloud emails, iTunes content, and so forth.
To download your Apple data archive:
• Visit the Apple Privacy Policy webpage at privacy.apple.com and sign in using your Apple ID and password
• Click "Request a copy of your data" under the Manage your data > Get a copy of your data section
• Choose the data you want to download
• After selecting what you want to download, click the "Continue" button
• Select a maximum file size for each file (irrespective of what you choose, you will get all the data)
• Click "Complete request"
You have now successfully requested Apple for your data. They will notify you on your Apple ID email address in about seven days. Once you receive the email, click "Get your data" within the time frame mentioned at the top of the email. Sign in with your Apple ID, and you will see the "Download your data" screen. Click the little download icon next to the data types to download them locally to your computer (open the ZIP file and dive in to see your data).
Capturing a screen recording on your Mac is valuable for a variety of scenarios. There are handy third-party apps to help with this, but Apple offers a free built-in option with macOS.
With modern macOS releases (Mojave and later), Macs have a hidden screen record app with more advanced controls like a timer, save to destination choices, show/hide the mouse pointer, remember last selection, microphone control, and more.
If you mostly do straightforward screen recording on Mac, the native functionality is free with no app to download.
• On your Mac keyboard, press the combination Command + Shift + 5 (can be used while running any app)
• In the bottom middle of the screen, choose the rectangle with a circle icon to record the whole screen or the dotted-line rectangle with a circle icon to record a selection of your screen
• Click the Options button if you’d like to enable the microphone, show mouse clicks, select a save location, and more
• Choose Record to start
• When you’re done, click the Stop button (circle with square icon) in the menu bar found in the top middle/right of your screen
• Your recording will show up on your Mac’s desktop by default unless you picked a different save location
You can also pull up this menu in QuickTime by clicking File > New Screen Recording but the keyboard shortcut is usually faster.
If you are going to sell, return, or give away a Mac, you almost certainly want to factory reset the computer first. Performing a factory reset on a Mac will erase all data on the Mac, and return it to a clean slate as if the computer were brand new, without any data or personal files on the computer at all.
Erasing a Mac and returning it to factory defaults has never been easier, thanks to the addition of a “Erase All Content & Settings” feature introduced in newer versions of macOS system software. Gone are the days where you had to manually erase and then reinstall system software, now you can simply let MacOS handle the task for you by choosing to erase and factory reset the Mac through a handy built-in feature.
The approach is available in macOS Ventura and newer only.
Be sure to back up the Mac with Time Machine first! Proceeding will erase all data, files, and information from the computer. This will erase all data on the Mac. Do not proceed unless you have backups of your data. Failure to backup will result in permanent data loss!
• Pull down the Apple menu and go to “System Settings...“
• Go to “General“
• Choose “Transfer or Reset”
• Click on “Erase All Content and Settings”
• Confirm that you want to erase everything, log out of your Apple ID, and remove all data from the Mac by clicking “Continue”
• Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the process
When the Mac has finished factory resetting and erasing everything, a freshly installed version of the current version of macOS will boot into the typical “Hello” screen. Assuming you’re going to be gifting this Mac or selling it, you probably do not want to set it up yourself, instead let the recipient handle it.
This same factory reset feature also exists in macOS Monterey, but it is accessed slightly differently on those Macs. To factory reset a macOS Monterey Mac, go to the Apple menu > System Preferences > System Preferences menu > Erase All Content And Settings. Be sure to backup all data beforehand, as usual.
Learn how to delete saved cookies, cache, and other site data for a specific website in Safari, Google Chrome or Firefox.
Websites use cookies and other site data to remember you, so you don’t have to log in again, repeat the two-factor authentication process, refill text forms, etc. Cookies and site data can also be used to remember your choices from previous browsing sessions and customize your preferences. For instance, a flight booking website can save the two cities you were looking to book tickets for.
While cookies, cache, and local site data are essential parts of web browsing, there can be instances where you will want to delete them. For example, if a website is showing error pages, is not loading correctly, takes ages to render images, displays an older version of the web page, or prevents you from logging in, clearing cookies and site data can help fix such problems. Additionally, it’s well known that hotel, flight, and other such sites track your past activity and may jack up the prices in future visits as they know you’re returning to their website and are likely to book. So, clearing cookies, cache, and site data before revisiting can help.
Why not clear all browser cookies? While you can certainly clear all your web browser data and start fresh, doing so logs you out of every website you’re signed into. Therefore, if your browsing experience across all sites is fine, but you have trouble with a specific website, clearing the cache and site data for that particular site is the best option.
In Safari:
• Launch Safari and click Safari > Settings... in the top menu bar
• Go to the Privacy tab and click Manage Website Data
• Wait for the website list to load and find the site whose cookies, cache, and data you want to delete (you can also type the website name in the search bar to find it quickly)
• Select a website or hold the Command key to select more than one
• Click the Remove button and hit Done
In Chrome:
• Open Google Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top right corner, followed by Settings
• Click Privacy and security in the left sidebar and go to Site settings > View permissions and data stored across sites
• Go through the list of websites or use the search bar to find the one whose data you want to delete, click the trash icon next to it to delete its cookies and data
In Firefox:
• Launch Firefox, click the hamburger menu icon in the upper right corner, and select Settings from the bottom
• Click Privacy & Security
• Click the Manage Data button under the Cookies and Site Data heading
• Select the website whose cookies and data you want to delete and click Remove Selected, then click Save Changes
There’s another way to clear a website’s data without going to settings. Unfortunately this tip will not work in Safari.
• Open Chrome or Firefox and visit the website whose cookies and local data you want to delete
• In Chrome, click the website settings icon on the left side of the address bar, if you’re in Firefox, click the tiny padlock icon instead
• If you’re in Chrome, click Cookies and site data, followed by Manage on-device site data, if you’re in Firefox, click Clear cookies and site data
• Click the trash icon or the remove button to delete that site’s data
