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How to Turn off 'Find My' on a Mac

Stop sharing your computer's location when you choose

By Jeremy Laukkonen Jeremy Laukkonen Writer Shoreline Community College Jeremy Laukkonen is automotive and tech writer for numerous major trade publications. When not researching and testing computers, game consoles or smartphones, he stays up-to-date on the myriad complex systems that power battery electric vehicles . lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on April 24, 2022 Reviewed by Ryan Perian Reviewed by Ryan Perian Western Governors University Ryan Perian is a certified IT specialist who holds numerous IT certifications and has 12+ years' experience working in the IT industry support and management positions. lifewire's editorial guidelines Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Apple Macs iPad

What to Know

Apple Menu > System Preferences > Apple ID > Find My Mac, and click Options.In the options window, click Turn Off where it says Find My Mac: On. This article explains how to turn off Find My on a Mac, making it so you can't track your Mac.

How to Turn off ' Find My' on a Mac

Find My is a feature that allows you to locate your Apple products, like your iPhone or your Mac, if they are lost or stolen. It’s tied to your Apple ID, which allows you to track any of your connected devices from any of your other devices, or via the iCloud website on virtually any device at all. If you’re worried about being tracked by Find My on your Mac, you can turn it off through System Preferences. This feature can be turned on and off at any time as long as you have access to your Mac, and switching it off doesn’t remove any of your data. Here’s how to turn off Find My on a Mac:
Click the Apple icon in the upper left corner of the menu bar.
Click System Preferences.
Click Apple ID.
Select iCloud from the left sidebar.
Deselect Find My Mac.
Enter your Apple ID password and click Continue.
This is your Apple ID password, not your local Mac password. Now enter your local Mac user password and click OK.
Click Done.
Find My is now disabled on your Mac.
To turn this feature back on, navigate to System Preferences > Apple ID, click the checkbox next to Find My Mac, click Options, and make sure it says Find My Mac: On.

How Do You Turn off Find My Mac From Another Device

You can't turn off the Find My Mac feature from another device. What you can do, however, is erase the Mac from that other device. While this will technically turn off Find My Mac, this is a radical way to go about doing so. This will erase the entire Mac and leave it in the state you first unboxed it. If you have access to the Mac, use the method from the previous section instead. If you go ahead with the following, understand all the data on the Mac will be erased. Navigate to the iCloud login screen.
Click Find iPhone.
Enter your Apple ID email and password, and click Sign In.
Click All Devices, and select the Mac you want to erase.
Click Erase Mac.
Click Erase.
You can also remove your Mac from your account altogether after erasing it, but erasing the Mac will prevent it from being tracked.

Why Do I Need to Turn off Find My Mac for Repair

Before you send a Mac in for repairs, you need to turn off Find My Mac. Apple doesn’t disclose exactly why this requirement exists, but the most likely reasons are they may need to offer you a replacement unit instead of repairing yours, it serves to prove you are the owner of the device, and they probably don’t want people to be able to track the location of their repair facilities for security purposes. When you send in an Apple product for repairs or warranty work, it isn’t always sent to an Apple repair facility. In the event repairs are too costly or complicated, they may offer to provide you with a replacement unit instead of fixing yours. Your device may be repaired later or simply disposed of, but in either case, there would be no reason for your Apple ID to still be associated with the device, or for Find My to still be enabled. By requiring you to disable Find My, Apple also effectively verifies you are the owner of the device. Since this feature can’t be disabled unless you know both the Apple ID password and local password associated with the device, the fact you can disable the feature proves you own it. FAQ How do I turn off Find My iPhone on a Mac? If you're selling your iPhone and need to disable Find My but can't turn off the feature on your iPhone, you'll need to go to iCloud and erase the device remotely. Log in to iCloud from a browser on your Mac, select Find My iPhone, select All Devices, and then choose your iPhone. Click Erase This Device. Note that this action erases all your iPhone's data How do I turn off Find My Mac without a passsword? If you need to turn off Find My on your Mac but can't recall your Apple ID password, try resetting your Apple ID password. Go to iforgot.apple.com, enter your username, and then choose an identity verification method (security questions or recovery email). After you've verified your identity, enter your new Apple ID password and click Reset Password. Once you've set a new password, turn off Find My on your Mac by going to System Preferences > Apple ID > Find My > Options, and then turn off Find My. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire How to Turn on Location Services on a Mac How to Restart a Mac in Recovery Mode How to Turn off or Disable Find My iPhone How to Turn on Bluetooth on a Mac How to Factory Reset an iPhone (All Models) How to Find Saved Passwords on Mac How to Sync Contacts from iPhone to Mac How to Turn Off Family Sharing for iTunes How to Sign Out of Apple ID on Mac How to Restore an iPad to Factory Default Using iTunes How to Access iCloud Photos From Any Apple, Windows, or Android Device How to Turn off Mouse Acceleration on Mac How to Set up a New iPhone How to Turn on AirDrop on a Mac 4 Ways to Find Lost AirPods in Any Situation How to Find My Apple Watch Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies