Tip: Make your Mac’s hard drive (Book) more secure with FileVault

FileVault ensures that malicious parties cannot just access the data of your Mac (Book). This is how you set up the extra security layer.

Enable FileVault

FileVault encrypts all data on your Mac’s hard drive (Book). This puts an extra layer of security over the files on your computer, as it were. This prevents malicious parties from just making a copy of your personal data, because they need a password. Here’s how to enable FileVault:

1. Open the System Preferences on your Mac (Book);
2. Go to ‘Security and privacy’ and then choose the second tab: ‘FileVault’;
3. Click on the padlock at the bottom to edit the settings;
4. Enter the administrator username and password;
5. Finally, click on ‘Enable FileVault’.

Do you use the Mac with others? Then you can indicate per user whether they are allowed to unlock the disk. You do need the passwords of the other Mac users.

Save your recovery code

When activating FileVault, you will be prompted to provide a password or recovery key. It is important that you do not forget it, otherwise all data on your Mac will be lost. Fortunately, your iCloud account comes to the rescue. If you forget the password, you can use iCloud to turn off your drive’s security and set a new password.

If you don’t want to use the FileVault recovery code in iCloud, it’s a good idea to create a local recovery code. You use this combination of letters and numbers when you have lost the password. It is important to keep this password in a separate place from your FileVault-encrypted drive, as you will not be able to access it anymore.

Disable FileVault

If you no longer want to encrypt the startup disk, or if you are getting rid of your Mac, it is a good idea to disable FileVault. You do this like this:

1. Open your Mac’s System Preferences (Book);
2. Go to ‘Security and privacy’ and then choose the second tab: ‘FileVault’;
3. Click on the padlock at the bottom to edit the settings;
4. Enter the administrator username and password;
5. Click on ‘Disable FileVault’.

The decryption process, i.e. the removal of the extra security layer, takes place in the background. It is important that your Mac is not in sleep mode and plugged into an electrical outlet. You can check the progress of the decryption in the FileVault section within the ‘Security & Privacy’ heading.

Secure your Mac

From online banking, tapping documents to browsing: you do everything on your Mac. Therefore, check out our basic tips for securing your Mac. Security does not have to be difficult at all.

However, it is important to always be careful, because internet criminals also keep up with the times. An example of this is phishing, where malicious parties try to steal personal information. Read our tips against phishing to keep you safe.

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