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CIS Essentials

Not using Administrator account

Time to fix

< 5m

What

You can use your Mac as a Standard or as an Administrator user.

The check will not pass if the current user is an administrator.

Why you should not use an Administrator account

Administrator accounts have extensive permissions that can make your system more vulnerable. Malware and hackers can exploit these permissions to access system files or install harmful software. A standard account limits these risks as it restricts the ability to install software or make system-wide changes without admin credentials.

There is almost no downside to using a Standard account. You can still install software and make changes to your system, but when macOS asks you for credentials, instead of just typing in the password, you type in the admin username and then the password.

For better user experience, we suggest using the Privileges app for convenient temporary permissions escalations.

How to convert your user to Standard user

This is far less work than it initially seems. We create a new admin user, and then demote your current main user to the Standard role. That's it, no reinstalling needed!

How to convert your user to Standard user

  • Open System Preferences, then click Users & Groups.
  • Click Add User and create a new Administrator user. For username, we suggest using <your_current_username>_admin, for example john_admin.
  • Reboot your Mac and login as the newly created Administrator user. No need to setup iCloud or login into any other service.
  • Open System Settings, go to Users & Groups in the sidebar. Find your previous user account, click the icon and toggle off this user to administer this computer.
  • Reboot your Mac and login as the newly demoted Standard user.
  • Any time macOS asks you for a password, remember to first enter the Administrator username.

How to prevent admin user & pass prompts when updating apps

If the app is installed into the root Applications folder (usually the default for most apps), then the administrator username and password is required for update. To avoid this, use App Store to install apps, or install apps into your user folder ~/Applications.

macOS Sequoia

Users & Groups