Taking a new MacBook out: first-week habits for cafes, offices and travel

MacUpdated

Before a new MacBook goes out for the first time, note its serial number, check Find My can see it, and set it to lock quickly. Then build the habits early: lock it as you stand up, keep it with you, and don't leave it on a cafe table. This page is about the first week with a new Mac; the general theft advice is in how to protect your laptop from theft.

Quick answer

At home: write down the serial number from Apple menu > About This Mac, turn on Find My Mac and check the Mac appears at icloud.com/find, and set Lock Screen to require your password soon after the display turns off. Out: lock with Control-Command-Q or Touch ID whenever you step away, and keep the Mac on you or locked away.

What's different about a new Mac?

Two things come with it that an old Mac doesn't have: a serial number you haven't noted yet, and the box. Get Safe Online's advice includes being careful how you dispose of boxes that might advertise you have new computers.

What should I do before it leaves the house?

Note the serial number. Apple says About This Mac shows it: choose Apple menu > About This Mac. It's also listed at account.apple.com under Devices. Get Safe Online suggests making a note of computer serial numbers to enable reporting if stolen. Registering and marking it are covered in how to protect your laptop from theft.

Check Find My can see it. Turn on Find My Mac, then look for the Mac in the Find My app on your iPhone, or at icloud.com/find. The steps are in how to turn on Find My for a new MacBook. Apple says Find My can only help locate and protect a Mac if it was set up before the Mac went missing.

Make it lock quickly. In System Settings > Lock Screen, set "Require password after screen saver begins or display is turned off" to a short time. Apple says this locks your Mac when it's left idle, so a login password is needed when it wakes. The other day-one settings, such as FileVault and Touch ID, are in security settings to turn on with a new MacBook.

Add a message. Turn on "Show message when locked" in the same settings. Apple says the message can provide contact information for a lost Mac.

How do I get into the habit of locking it?

Pick one way and use it every time you stand up. Apple lists Control-Command-Q, pressing Touch ID, Apple menu > Lock Screen and a hot corner set to Lock Screen. The steps for each are in how to lock your Mac screen.

What about cafes?

Keep it close and keep it covered when you're not using it. Police.uk's street robbery advice says never to leave a mobile, any other device, wallet or purse on the table of an outdoor cafe, pub or restaurant.

Two more habits from Get Safe Online's advice on using computers in public places:

  • Mind who can see the screen. It warns about "shoulder surfing", people viewing your screen, and suggests a privacy filter that blocks the view from people sitting either side of you.
  • Be careful on public Wi-Fi. It says that unless you're on a secure web page, don't send or receive private information on public Wi-Fi, and suggests your own mobile internet device as an alternative.

What about the office or a shared workspace?

The NCSC's advice for remote and mobile users says a device is valuable and attractive to thieves, and not to leave it unattended in an insecure location: lock it away if possible, or keep it on you. It also says to be aware of who can see your screen.

If you leave it on a desk while you get a coffee, lock it first. Longer absences, overnight desks and libraries are covered in leaving your laptop at work or in a library.

What about trains, flights and hotels?

Get Safe Online's laptop advice:

  • Keep your laptop with you whenever possible.
  • Carry it in hand baggage on an aircraft or coach.
  • When it's unattended, for example in a hotel room or meeting room, keep it out of sight or physically locked up.
  • Avoid bags that look like laptop bags, such as one with a manufacturer's logo on it.

Police.uk's advice for visitors to London adds that hotel lobbies attract thieves, so don't leave luggage unattended even for a few seconds, and to keep phones and laptops close at hand and never unattended when you're out. Hotel safes are covered in is it safe to leave your laptop in a hotel room.

What if it goes missing in the first week?

Apple's steps, if Find My was set up: open the Find My app on another Apple device or sign in at icloud.com/find, select the Mac to see its approximate location, and turn on Lost Mode. Apple says a Mac with Apple silicon marked as lost is locked with your Apple Account password. Report it to the police, who may ask for the serial number you noted. The full list is in what to do if your MacBook is stolen.

Where Failshot fits

A new Mac goes everywhere with you in its first week: the cafe, the office, the train. Your password is the first layer. Failshot is the second: second layer device security for your Mac, for the moment someone sits down at it, and a new Mac is the moment to add it.

While it's on, Failshot photographs whoever unlocks your Mac, then, with Pro, records a 5-second video, and its window tells them the unlock was photographed. With the Mac's built-in camera, the green light comes on. With Pro, turn on alerts and Failshot emails you about an unlock you don't confirm as yours, a wrong Failshot PIN or answer, or its camera access being switched off while it's on. An unlock alert carries the photo and the time, with the clip when one was recorded. Switching it off, or quitting it from its menu, takes Touch ID or your Failshot PIN and answer, never your Mac password.

Failshot runs on macOS 14 or later. Free to download. It's free to use. Pro adds video, email alerts and the encrypted vault, and you can try Pro free for 7 days. Your card is taken at sign-up and charged on day 8 unless you cancel. The trial is on failshot.app, for the Mac. iPhone, Android and Windows are coming soon.

More questions

Where do I find my new MacBook's serial number?

Choose Apple menu > About This Mac. Apple says it's also in System Information, at account.apple.com under Devices, and printed on the Mac or its packaging. Write it down somewhere other than the Mac.

Is it safe to use cafe Wi-Fi on a new Mac?

Get Safe Online says not to send or receive private information on public Wi-Fi unless you're on a secure web page, and suggests your own mobile internet device as an alternative.

Should I register my new MacBook anywhere?

Get Safe Online suggests registering computer equipment on the Immobilise National Property Register, which it says gives a better chance of it being returned if the police recover it.

Does Find My work if the Mac is offline?

With the Find My network on, Apple says the Find My app can show your device's location even when it's offline. Locking or erasing it needs the Mac to be on and connected to the internet.

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