How to use Touch ID on your MacBook Pro
- nov
- 14
Apple's new Touch Bar MacBook Pro models offer support for Touch ID, the company's fingerprint-based authentication system.
If you own a recent iPhone, you've likely used Touch ID: It's Apple's built-in privacy system for unlocking your device and authorizing Apple Pay. Here's how to set it up and use it on your Mac!
How does Touch ID work?
Touch ID is the name of Apple's fingerprint identity sensor. It's a form of biometric security that's meant to be more convenient than entering a passcode or password, especially on iPhones and iPads we use hundreds of times a day.
How to add your fingerprint to Touch ID on your MacBook Pro
You'll be asked to register a fingerprint for Touch ID as part of the 2016 MacBook Pro set up process. You can register additional fingerprints at any time, though. You can have up to three fingerprints per user account on your Mac, five in total across accounts. Those fingerprints are then encrypted and stored offline in the MacBook Pro's Secure Enclave.
- Go to the menu and select System Preferences.
- Select the Touch ID preference pane.
- Click on Add a fingerprint.
- Enter your user password.
How to log in with Touch ID on your MacBook Pro
As with Touch ID on the iPhone and iPad, when you first boot up your Mac, you have to use your password when you log in. After that first login, however, you're free to use Touch ID whenever waking your MacBook Pro from sleep.
- Open your closed MacBook Pro (or press the Touch ID button).
- Rest your finger on the Touch ID sensor.
How to switch users with Touch ID on your MacBook Pro
If you have multiple user accounts on your MacBook Pro, you can register different fingerprints with each; once each account has been logged in once after initial boot, you can immediately return to that account by using the Touch ID sensor.
- Open your closed MacBook Pro (or press the Touch ID button).
- Rest your finger on the Touch ID sensor.
How to name a fingerprint
- Go to the menu and select System Preferences.
- Select the Touch ID preference pane.
- Press the Tab key to cycle through each fingerprint option, or click directly on the name of the fingerprint.
- Rename your fingerprint.
- Press the Return key.
How to delete a fingerprint from Touch ID
- Go to the menu and select System Preferences.
- Select the Touch ID preference pane.
- Hover over the fingerprint icon you wish to delete until you see the X in the upper left corner, then click on it.
- Enter your password.
- Press Delete to confirm.
Questions?
Other questions about using Touch ID on your MacBook Pro? Let us know below.