Basic – Check and Fix it descriptions
Per default, the Apple firewall allows for signed Apps incoming network traffic without notification. Turn this off and you learn, which traffic is related to your Apps. Even better: use a third party firewall which also controls outgoing traffic. See A firewall should be activated
This check is visible only, when Apple firewall is activated.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Security & Privacy” > “Firewall”
- “Click on lock to make changes”
- Click on “Firewall options”
- Deselect “Automatically allow built-in software to receive incoming connections”
- Deselect “Automatically allow downloaded signed software to receive incoming connections”
- By the way: enable “Enable stealth mode”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
It is possible not to download updates directly using Apple servers. This makes sense in companies, which implement a central update server with own update policies. If this is not your case, you should definitely deactivate it and use Apple servers again to ensure you are not hijacked.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Open the “terminal.app”
- Enter
defaults delete /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate CatalogURL - (This will reset to system defaults)
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Remote Management is a service to support/control your Mac remotely from other computers. This makes sense when you get support or this is activated within a company, otherwise you should immediately deactivate it, when this is not the case.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Sharing”
- Disable “Remote Management”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
With “File sharing” you can provide access to a given folder via network for other computers. While this can make sense for some circumstances or temporary, it is often forgotten to disable it again. Turn off “file sharing” if this is not needed.
File sharing activates Service Message Block (SMB) protocol and the Apple File Protocol (AFP) which opens several network ports on your Mac and have had some vulnerabilities in the past.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Sharing”
- Disable “File sharing”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Remote login is only for very experienced users and is realized by a ssh / sftp server. These services have to be configured with care. If you are not an administrator you should not have these services activated.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Sharing”
- Disable “Remote Login”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Safari declares some kind of files by default as safe and opens them after a download has finished. These file types are pictures, movies, audio, PDF, archives, … Some of them are known in the past to bring in malicious code. Maybe you have accidentally clicked on a link which downloads a file, there is nearly no chance to stop opening the file. So turn off these feature and decide on your own, to open these files or not.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- In Safari go to “Preferences” > “General”
- Deselect “open ‘safe’ files after downloading”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
System Integrity Protection is a security technology in OS X El Capitan and later that’s designed to help prevent potentially malicious software from modifying protected files and folders on your Mac. System Integrity Protection restricts the root user account and limits the actions that the root user can perform on protected parts of the Mac operating system.
Further reading: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204899
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 10.14
- Boot to Recovery OS by restarting your machine and holding down the Command and R keys at startup.
- Launch Terminal from the Utilities menu.
- Enter the following command:
$ csrutil enable - Then restart you Mac again and run SimpleumCheck to check this again.
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Show a screen saver after a given time to protect your on screen content. Even set a password so nobody can get into your Mac while you are away.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Desktop & Screen Saver”
- Click the Screen Saver tab. Screen savers appear on left side of the window, and a preview of the selected screen saver appears on the right.
- In “Start after” choose an suitable time. 5 or 10 Min is ok. (depends on your environment)
- Ensure in the Screen saver options, that your computer name is not shown.
Require a password after the screen saver begins
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Security & Privacy” > “General”
- “Require Password” xx seconds. Choose “immediately”.
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
While your screen is being shared, the user of the other Mac sees what’s on your screen and can open, move, and close files and windows, open apps, and even restart your Mac. You should definitely disable this feature.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 10.14
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Sharing”
- Disable “Screen Sharing”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Your login/default keychain, which is created for you when you set up your Mac, is unlocked automatically when you log in or when you enter your keychain password in an Unlock Keychain dialog. When your Mac is going into sleep mode the keychain should be locked.
Remember: your keychain contains all your stored passwords and much more!
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 10.14
- Open Keychain Access.
- If keychain is not visible in the left column, choose View > Show Keychain.
- Select the “login” keychain in the Keychain list, then right click
- click on “Change Settings” for Keychain “login”
- enable “Lock after XX minutes of activity” (5 Minutes is a good balance between security and comfort)
- enable “Lock when sleeping”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Safari warns you if the site you’re visiting is a suspected phishing website. Phishing is a fraudulent attempt to steal your personal information, such as user names, passwords, and other account information. A fraudulent website masquerades as a legitimate one, such as a bank, financial institution, or email service provider. Before visiting a website, Safari may send information calculated from the website address to Safe Browsing providers to check if the website is fraudulent.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Open “Safari” go to “Preferences” > “Security”
- Enable “warn when visiting a fraudulent website”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Updating your software is one key action to stay secure.
Apple and App developers frequently release new software versions. These updates may contain security fixes and you should install them immediately. Backup and update your Mac frequently. Use the App Store auto update capabilities.
How to fix it
macOS 10.15 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Software Update”
- Click “Advanced…”
- Enable “Check for updates”
- Enable “Install system data files and security updates” (these are critical updates too, absolutely recommended)
- Enable “Install macOS updates” (recommended)
- Enable “Install app updates from the App Store”
macOS 10.11 – 10.14
- Go to “System Preferences” > “App Store”
- “click the lock to make changes”
- Enable “Automatically check for updates”
- Enable “Install system data and security updates” (these are critical updates too, absolutely recommended)
- Enable “macOS updates ” (or “OS X updates”) (recommended)
- Enable “app updates”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Your Mac has a built-in firewall, but it’s not enabled by default.
The Apple firewall checks all incoming traffic and has rules how to decide which incoming traffic is allowed, denied, or when to ask you what to do. Having an active firewall is very important to block attacks. The Apple firewall allows per default incoming traffic for several applications from Apple and for all signed Apps. You can turn this off.
It is also possible to go in stealth mode, which means that your Mac does not respond to “ping” anymore.
See also the official Apple FAQ: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201642
Recommendation:
It is also important to track outgoing traffic, which is not directly done by the Apple firewall. You will be very surprised what all the Apps you know, communicate with servers you never heard of.
We recommend: Little Snitch from Objective Development Software GmbH
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu.
- Click Security or Security & Privacy.
- Click the Firewall tab.
- Unlock the pane by clicking the lock in the lower-left corner and enter the administrator username and password.
- Click “Turn On Firewall” or “Start” to enable the firewall.
- Click Advanced to customize the firewall configuration.
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Adobe Flash has caused many problems in the past, with critical vulnerabilities frequently being exposed and Adobe regularly being required to release security updates.
The Flash plug-in for Apple Safari is based on Netscape Plug-In API (NPAPI), which is supported only till Safari version 11. In Safari 12, support for NPAPI plug-ins is removed, and hence the current Flash plug-in will not work.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Select Safari and click Preferences.
- 10.12-: Click the Websites button, then Internet Plug-ins: Website Settings.
- 10.11: Click “Security” > “Plugin-Settings…”
- Deselect Adobe Flash Player.
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
FileVault full-disk encryption prevent unauthorized access to the data on your startup disk. It encrypts all your data on your startup drive. When your Mac is off, your data is not readable by an attacker.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Security & Privacy”
- Click the FileVault tab.
- Click lock, then enter an administrator name and password.
- We recommend not to store your recovery key in iCloud, instead write it down (outside your Mac, plain paper does a good job here.)
- Click Turn On FileVault.
- A reboot is required
More about activating FileVault from Apple Support https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204837
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
A guest account was setup during the standard installation of macOS. The guest account can be used without a password.
Disable the guest account to reduce the possibilities that unautorized persons can work with your Mac from your IP or may get access to your data.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 10.14
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Users & Groups”
- Choose “Guest User”
- Deselect “Allow guests to log in to this computer”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
“Automatic Login” allows that a given user is automatically logged in, so there is no need to enter a password. This is obviously not secure, because everybody who has access to your Mac can get in and has access to your data including your keychain (where other passwords are stored).
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Users & Groups” > “Login Options”
- At “Automatic Login” choose “Off”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
To login to your Mac, a user name and password is needed. If your Mac shows all available users, an unauthorized person can see, which users are available and only need to guess your password, which makes it much easier to get access.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Open “System Preferences”
- Go to “Users & Groups”
- “click on lock to make changes” and enter your password
- Click on “Login Options”
- At “Display login window as:”
- Choose “Name and password”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
With AutoFill, Safari can automatically fill in your credit card information, contact information, passwords, and more. It can automatically fill in information from any contact in Contacts. It can also generate a secure password when you need to create one. Safari highlights autofilled fields in yellow.
But keep in mind: Everybody who has access to your Mac, can use this function too.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Start Safari
- Open “Preferences”
- Go to Tab “AutoFill”
- Deselect the auto fill options
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Password hints make it easier for unauthorized persons to gain access to your Mac by providing information to anyone who has access to your computer and knows your user name. This info could include the password itself or other information that might be readily discerned with basic knowledge of the end user or gathered through social engineering.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- System Preferences > Users & Groups > Login Options
- Deselect “Show password hints”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Filename extensions are normally hidden in macOS, so the shown filename is shorter.
But imagine you see a file devil.jpg maybe there is a well taken photo in, but the real name is devil.jpg.app and it is a virus.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Choose Finder > Preferences, then click Advanced.
- Select or deselect “Show all filename extensions.”
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.
Gatekeeper helps to protect your Mac from apps that could adversely affect it.
Some apps, downloaded and installed from the Internet, could adversely affect your Mac. Gatekeeper helps to protect your Mac from such apps. Gatekeeper checks, if an App you want to start, was signed with an Apple Developer certificate and checks the integrity of the app. This ensures, that the app wasn’t modified after the app was signed by the developer. This also ensures, that the developer is known by Apple.
How to fix it
macOS 10.11 – 11.0
- Go to “System Preferences” > “Security & Privacy” > “General”
- “click on the lock to make changes”
- At “Allow apps downloaded from”
- You can choose “App Store” or “App Store and identified developers” (which is needed when you want to install and start App from outside the AppStore but are signed with a developer certificate)
- The third option is not normally show since macOS 10.12 (you see it only when Gatekeeper is off)
Further reading: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202491
Keep in mind: not every security and privacy setting is suitable for everyone. Enhancing the security can lead in losing functionality and/or comfort.
Before making changes, please backup your Mac! Do not make too many change at once. After changing your Mac, check if your normal usage of your Mac has changed in a way which fits to you. Are your really willing to loose some functionality and/or comfort?
Most important is, that you learn and understand what are the advantages and disadvantages of the security settings and that you are aware about the capabilities and risks of your Mac configuration.
To skip this result message from your next security scan, you can deactivate this check. FAQ: How to deactivate a check.
CHECK RESULTS BY SIMPLEUMCHECK DO NOT COVER ALL ASPECTS OF POSSIBLE SECURITY CHECKS OR MAYBE INCORRECT OR INCOMPLETE. THE RESULTS ARE ONLY CLUES FOR RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY AND PRIVACY ON THE MAC.
The use of SimpleumCheck, the checks and FAQ articles are provided under the SimpleumCheck Terms and Conditions.