This process takes awhile, is resource intensive, and will slow your computer down. For most users, it is acceptable to start the process and let it run unattended overnight.

1. Open Disk Utility. You will find it in /Applications/Utilities or search with Spotlight.
2. In the left panel, find the hard drive you need to remove the insecurely deleted files from and click on the name of the disk.
3. From here on please use caution. It is possible to unintentionally delete data that you mean to keep.
4. In the right hand side of the Disk Utility window you will see 4 tabs. Click the Erase tab.
5. Click the Erase Free Space… button
6. A sheet will appear with the options pictured above.
7. Choose 7-Pass or 35-Pass erase depending on the level of security you desire and the amount of time you have.
8. Click Erase Free Space

Both options will take a long time, with the 35-Pass taking 5 times as long as a 7-Pass. The length of the process will also depend on how much free space is available on your hard drive.

When you empty the trash on your Mac, the files aren’t destroyed, your Mac just makes a note that the hard disk space where those files are saved can now be used for something else if needed.

And just like you kitchen trash, emptying your Mac’s trash, doesn’t protect that data from being read by enterprising parties. To make sure sensitive data is securely deleted from your Mac, use Secure Empty Trash.

1. Put your sensitive files in the Trash
2. Choose Secure Empty Trash… in the Finder menu

Performing a secure erase takes longer and uses more processor power than a normal erase, so its a good idea to use it for files that are actually sensitive. Keep in mind that larger files will take much longer to erase.

Securing your computer now protects you from both of those possibilities.

1. Open Safari if it isn’t already running
2. Select Preferences in the Safari menu
3. In the General pane uncheck the box labeled Open “safe” files after downloading
4. Close the Safari preferences

Safari will still download your files to your preferred download location (~/Downloads by default) but you can now open the downloads manually. On Leopard this is easily done with the Downloads stack in your dock.

Disable Infrared

To disable the infrared receiver on your Macbook, MacBook Air, Macbook Pro, Mac mini, or iMac follow these steps:

1. Open System Preferences in the Apple Menu
2. Click the Security preference pane
3. Click the General tab if it is not already selected
4. Check the box labeled “Disable remote control infrared receiver”

Alternately, if you use a remote with your computer, you can click the Pair button to pair only a specific remote with your computer. Provided you keep that remote secure, you will be safe from IR chicanery.

Disable Bluetooth

To disable Bluetooth, follow these steps:

1. Open System Preferences in the Apple Menu
2. Click the Bluetooth preference pane
3. Uncheck the On box

If you use Bluetooth devices, then you can increase your security by pairing your devices and unchecking the Discoverable box in the Bluetooth preference pane, but you will need to leave the On box checked.

To secure your account and password, clear your hint or make it a reminder that isn’t directly related to your password. You can edit your password hint in the Accounts preference pane:

1. Open System Preferences in the Apple Menu
2. Click the Accounts preference pane
3. Click on your account in the list
4. Click the Change Password… button.
5. Enter your old and new passwords and password hint.

If you want to change your hint but not your password, you can re-enter your existing password in the “New Password:” and “Verify:” fields.

Two steps to secure the login process are to Disable Automatic Login if you didn’t with last weeks’ tip, and force users to enter the username as well as the password. Here’s how.

1. Open System Preferences in the Apple Menu
2. Click the Accounts preference pane.
3. Click Login Options at the bottom of the left column.
4. Click the Lock in the lower left and enter an admin username and password (probably yours).
5. Change the Automatic login popup to disabled.
6. Directly under that setting, change the Display login window as to Name and password

Now when your computer is restarted or a user logs out of her account, in order to login the user will be required to type the user account name as well as the password, requiring any would-be hackers to guess both. You can use either your “Long Name” which his visible in that left column of the Accounts preference pane or your “Short Name” which is the name of your home folder.

First, Turn On a ScreenSaver

1. Open System Preferences in the Apple Menu
2. Click the Desktop & Screen Saver preference pane
3. Click the Screen Saver tab
4. Enable a screen saver and set Start screen saver slider to a timeframe that you are comfortable with

Second, Password Protect Sleep and Screen Savers

1. Return to System Preferences by clicking Show All
2. Click the Security preference pane
3. Click the General Tab
4. Check the Require password… checkbox
5. Check the Disable Automatic Login checkbox
6. Close System Preferences

Your Mac will now enable the screen saver after your specified period of inactivity and require your account password to exit the screen saver, wake from sleep, or login after restarting.

Making these changes will protect your computer from easy access if you walk away, but they don’t provide comprehensive security; we’ll share some more tips for securing your data in the next month.

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1. When you are ready to swap batteries, put your notebook to sleep
2. Wait for all activity to stop and the sleep light to start pulsing
3. Remove your battery and replace it with the spare
4. Open your notebook and press the power button to wake it up
5. You will need to wait an extra moment for Safe Sleep

Please remember that this method works with laptops that support Safe Sleep. All MacBooks and MacBook Pros support Safe Sleep. This does not work with any iBooks or most PowerBooks.

If you are curious, Safe Sleep is a feature that writes the contents of your RAM (which would ordinarily be lost without power) to the hard drive when you put the notebook to sleep. Thus the computer can recover from a loss of RAM contents once power is restored.

The three basic types of screenshots are the whole screen, a certain area of the screen, and a specific window. Whichever you choose, the resulting picture is always saved as a file on your desktop.

Whole Screen

To capture the entire screen, windows, desktop, dock, menu bar and all, push Command-Shift-3. If you hold down Command and Shift, the screenshot will be captured when you press 3.

Area of the Screen

To take a picture of only a limited area of your screen–like a section of a webpage or spreadsheet–press Command-Shift-4. Your cursor will turn into crosshairs. Hold down the mouse button and draw a box around the area you want captured in your screenshot.

Specific Window

If you want the contents of an entire window, including title bar, scrollbars, shadow, and the like, press Command-Shift-4. Then press the Spacebar and your cross-hair will become a camera. Click on the window you want to capture. This also works for the dock and menu bar.