If you leave your computer unattended make sure to lock the computer to prevent someone from sitting at the console and using the computer under your account. Locking your computer will require your login password to be entered in order to unlock the screen.
Windows
On Windows systems you can lock the computer by pressing ctrl+alt+del and selecting “Lock this computer”
To have the computer automatically lock after a certain interval make sure the checkbox is selected for ‘On resume, display logon screen’ under Screen Saver settings and the ‘Wait:’ interval to activate the screen saver is set to something appropriate. By default, computers will automatically lock after 15 minutes of no activity, based on the campus security policy.
Mac
To place an icon of the keychain access app in your menu bar:
- Open /Applications/Utilities/Keychain Access.app
- From Keychain Access menu, select Preferences
- Under General tab, check the box for ‘Show keychain status in menu bar’
You now have a shortcut to lock the screen by clicking the lock icon and select ‘Lock Screen’
To set up automatic locking go to System Preferences -> Security & Privacy and check the box for ‘Require password for sleep and screen saver’