Panic Button for Your Mac Keep Touch ID for daily convenience. Get instant password-only security when you need it . Download Free Learn More Why PanicLock? Touch ID is genuinely useful 99% of the time—faster, easier, no shoulder-surfing risk. Most people don't want to disable it permanently. But that 1% of situations where you need instant password-only security? There's no fast option on macOS. PanicLock is your escape hatch: Keep the convenience of biometrics for daily use, with an instant "oh shit" button when circumstances change. How It Works On iOS, you can squeeze your phone's buttons to disable biometrics. macOS has no equivalent — until now. ⚡ One-Click Lock Instantly disable Touch ID and lock your screen ⌨️ Keyboard Shortcut Trigger from anywhere with customizable hotkey 🔐 Password Only Touch ID won't work until you unlock with password See It In Action Simple, unobtrusive, always ready when you need it. Lives in Your Menu Bar Always one click away, never in your way Customizable Shortcut Set your own global keyboard hotkey Password Required Touch ID disabled until you unlock PanicLock vs Shutdown 🚨 PanicLock Fast "oh shit" button Instant lock (1 second) Disables Touch ID immediately Preserves your session Back to work in minutes 🔴 Full Shutdown Maximum security Purges encryption keys Fully locks FileVault Takes time to shutdown & restart Kills your session Use shutdown when you can, PanicLock when you can't. Shutting down is the most secure option—but when you need your Mac locked now and you'll be back in five minutes, PanicLock is your answer. Built For ✈️ Travelers Protecting sensitive client or company data across borders 📰 Journalists Safeguarding sources and confidential information ⚖️ Lawyers Maintaining attorney-client privilege 📣 Activists Securing devices in hostile environments FBI Warrant Forced Biometric Unlock of Reporter's Devices On January 14, 2026, FBI agents executed a search warrant at the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson , seizing her phone, two laptops, and a Garmin watch. The warrant reportedly included a section explicitly titled "Biometric Unlock" , authorizing agents to attempt to unlock seized devices using Natanson's face or fingerprints rather than demanding a passcode. Natanson had communicated with more than 1,100 confidential sources using Signal and other encrypted tools. The warrant created a legal pathway to access those communications without compelling her to disclose a password . Security and press-freedom experts warned that biometric unlock provisions collapse the practical barrier between possession of a seized device and access to its encrypted contents. Sources: Columbia Journalism Review — Nothing Is Secure : https://www.cjr.org/news/hannah-natanson-fbi-washington-post-raid-devices-seized-runa-sandvik-security-computer-phone-laptop-sources.php Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press explainer: https://www.rcfp.org/fbi-raid-washington-post-explainer/ Legal Protection Matters Passwords vs Biometrics: The US Legal Divide US courts are split on whether law enforcement can compel you to unlock a device using biometrics. Passwords and passcodes are generally treated as testimonial under the Fifth Amendment, they reveal the contents of your mind and are therefore protected. Biometrics, by contrast, have often been treated as physical evidence , more like fingerprints or DNA. That distinction is now breaking down. Ninth Circuit — United States v. Payne (April 2024) In United States v. Payne , the Ninth Circuit held that compelling a suspect to unlock a phone using a fingerprint did not violate the Fifth Amendment . Police physically grabbed Payne's thumb and used it to unlock his phone after he refused to provide the passcode. The court concluded this did not implicate the Fifth Amendment because the act required no cognitive exertion and did not reveal the contents of Payne's mind. The court analogized the compelled fingerprint unlock to traditional forms of physical evidence collection, such as fingerprints taken during booking or a blood draw. Holding: No Fifth Amendment violation. Source: Ninth Circuit opinion (April 17, 2024): https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca9/22-50262/22-50262-2024-04-17.html D.C. Circuit — United States v. Brown (January 2025) The D.C. Circuit reached the opposite conclusion in United States v. Brown . In that case, the FBI compelled the defendant to unlock his phone using a fingerprint. The court held that this did violate the Fifth Amendment , reasoning that the act of unlocking the phone communicated protected facts — including that the defendant knew how to open the device and exercised control over its contents. Rather than treating biometric unlocking as purely physical, the court emphasized the implicit testimonial communication involved in successfully unlocking a personal device. Holding: Compelled biometric unlocking was testimonial and unconstitutional. Sources: D.C. Circuit opinio...