How to Lock Terminal on Mac

Lock Terminal so it will not open without Touch ID or your password. Four steps, about a minute.

Lock Terminal on Mac, step by step

Download Cloak from trycloak.app and open it. Set up Touch ID or a password the first time it asks. There is no account.
Click the plus button under Locked apps, tick Terminal, and click Lock.
Quit Terminal if it is open.
Open Terminal again. Cloak now asks for Touch ID before it will launch.

Your Mac password works as a fallback by default. If other people know that password, open Cloak's Settings, turn off "Let my Mac password unlock Cloak", and set a Cloak password instead.

Who this is for

For anyone who lets other people use their Mac. Terminal reaches files and settings well beyond itself, so a lock here protects more than one app.

What Screen Time can't do

Apple has no way to lock a single app on a Mac. The closest thing is Screen Time, which puts a daily time limit on Terminal. A limit is not a lock. Terminal opens normally until the time runs out, the Screen Time passcode is four digits, and anyone who knows it can click Ignore Limit for the rest of the day. It was built to manage screen time, not privacy. Cloak asks for Touch ID or your password every single time Terminal opens.

Why lock Terminal at all

Terminal can run powerful commands and exposes your shell history, making it risky to leave open on a shared or work machine. Because casual access here reaches far past this one app into the files and settings behind it, Terminal is exactly the kind of app worth putting behind Touch ID.

Why a Mac-level lock beats Terminal's own settings

System and developer apps almost never ship with their own lock, and the ones that do are easy to bypass. A Mac-level lock from Cloak treats the app like a vault: it will not open without Touch ID, no matter how someone tries to launch it.

Frequently asked questions

Does locking Terminal with Cloak slow it down?

No. Cloak only steps in at launch to ask for Touch ID. Once Terminal is unlocked it runs exactly as it normally would, with no background overhead.

Will I still get Terminal notifications while it is locked?

Notification behaviour is controlled by macOS, not by Cloak. If you want Terminal alerts hidden too, pair the lock with hiding the app, or turn off previews for Terminal in System Settings under Notifications.

What happens if Touch ID is not available?

By default Cloak offers your Mac login password as a fallback, so you can still open Terminal on a Mac without a Touch ID sensor or if your finger is not recognised. If other people know your Mac password, you can turn that fallback off and use a separate Cloak password instead.

Can I lock Terminal with Screen Time instead?

Screen Time sets a time limit, not a lock. Terminal opens normally until the limit is reached, and the limit can be ignored for the day by anyone who knows the four-digit passcode. Cloak asks for Touch ID every time.

How to lock Terminal on your Mac