Can a Stolen Mac be Formatted? What a Thief Can Do with it

Although it is the last thing we want to happen, we must assume that our Mac can be stolen due to our carelessness or because we are docked in the middle of the street. The first question we all ask ourselves is … what can you do with a stolen Mac? In this article we tell you what thieves can do with a Mac that is not theirs.

mac stolen

Prepare your Mac for possible thefts

It is always important to keep in mind that at any time we can leave the Mac forgotten or they can take it from us. This is why you have to configure the Mac perfectly to avoid possible upsets and thus be able to track it.

Activate ‘Find my Mac’

As soon as we start using a new Mac we must make sure that the option ‘Find my Mac’ is active. In this way we can track the equipment if it is lost or also block it completely so that no one can access our personal data. This is something similar to what we have in iOS with ‘Find my iPhone‘ and that is so famous. In order to carry out this check, simply follow these steps:

  1. Enter the System Preferences.
  2. Click at the top of the ‘iCloud’ section.
  3. Among the options that will appear, you should look for the one that says ‘Find my Mac’ next to a radar icon. Check the box.

Buscar mi Mac macOS Mojave

Encrypts the hard drive

When we are setting up a new Mac from scratch, it gives us the option to encrypt the disk with FileVault . It is always recommended to do so since in this way all the data that we have stored on the disk will be protected by a password. It is important to detail that if we forget the password or the recovery key, all the data will be lost as a security measure. In this way, when a Mac is stolen, thieves will not be able to access the information on the hard drive thanks to this encryption through software.

If you didn’t set it up at first, you can do it at any time by following these steps:

  • Enter System Preferences.
  • Access the ‘Security and privacy’ section.
  • At the top select the ‘FileVault’ tab.
  • Click on ‘Activate FileVault’.

In the configuration process you can choose, for example, how you want to unlock the hard drive. The most common is to do it through the iCloud account, but if you want more security you can create a recovery key.

What to do if your Mac has been stolen

Locate it with ‘Search’

If the worst has happened and your Mac has been stolen, the first thing you should do is stay calm and think about getting an iPhone or any device to block by iCloud. This can only be done if they have previously activated ‘Find my Mac’. If you are on an iPhone, you simply have to access the ‘Search’ app and press the stolen Mac.

Buscar mi Mac iPhone

If the thief is ready, he will have turned off the Mac to prevent you from geolocating it with the application. But you can also block it to prevent anyone from using it and also a message will appear on the screen so that it is known to be yours. The latter can be useful especially if you have lost it, and find it in a chair for example. With this message they can send you your Mac if you provide, for example, a contact telephone number.

We want to emphasize that these options can be seen in this iOS app or on any device by going to icloud.com/find .

Can you format it?

If you have followed the steps mentioned above, the thief will have a difficult time formatting the hard drive. But there are always methods to be able to clean the equipment and put it up for sale as a second-hand equipment. This is why we must keep in mind that you have to lock the Mac through iCloud so that when a configuration is made from scratch our credentials are required to start the computer. This renders the equipment totally useless and there is a chance that the thief may not profit from the equipment.

Change passwords and report

If you were not far-sighted enough to activate this service, it is important to take some preventive measures. To prevent access to your cloud data, you have to change the password for the Apple ID and all the services you use on the Mac. For example, you have to change the password for your email, bank or social networks.

Once this is done, all you have to do is go to any police station to file a report for the theft of the Mac. It is important to take note of the serial number of the equipment to attach it to the report. In this way, if the equipment appears in the future, it may be returned to you by registering with this complaint.

Check your insurance

In these cases, there are many home insurances that protect you to give you a part of the value of the equipment. We recommend that you check all the information about it with your insurance. In addition, if you hired another separate insurance that covered these types of cases, it is time to claim a part of the value of the equipment.