The Workspace Segregation Vector
If you are allowing a family member or a colleague to regularly use your Mac, you must never give them access to your primary administrator account. Doing so exposes your private Safari browsing history, your synchronized iCloud photos, and your saved passwords. You must create a completely isolated, sandboxed digital environment—a dedicated user account—that allows them to browse the internet and use applications without ever penetrating your personal file structure.
How to Create a New User Account
macOS allows you to spawn entirely new user profiles complete with their own unique Desktop, Documents folder, and application preferences.
1. Click the Apple Logo in the top-left corner of the screen.
2. Select System Settings from the dropdown menu (or System Preferences on older versions).
3. In the left-hand sidebar, scroll down and click on Users & Groups.
4. Look at the main pane and click the Add Account… button.
5. macOS will immediately demand your current administrator password (or Touch ID) to prove you have the authority to create new profiles.
6. A configuration window will appear.
* New Account: Click this dropdown. Select Standard for a normal user (recommended), or Administrator if you want them to have full power to delete applications and change system files.
* Full Name: Type the person’s name (e.g., “John Doe”).
* Account Name: This auto-populates (e.g., “johndoe”) and acts as the name of their Home folder. Leave it as is.
* Password: Type a secure password that they will use to log in.
* Verify & Hint: Retype the password and provide a helpful hint.
7. Click the blue Create User button.
The operating system instantly carves out a new segment of the hard drive. You can now log out of your account, and the new user’s name will appear on the primary Mac login screen.