Apple's Mac security is so good, it's sending used M1 MacBooks to the scrap heap

Apple's Activation Lock is causing headaches for third-party resellers who can't get into used MacBooks.

- ROMAN LOYOLA

Apple's efforts to protect a user's data are a major selling point for customers. If your MacBook is stolen, it's extremely difficult for the thief to bypass the laptop's security measures and access the data as long as you've taken advantage of the tools at your disposal (fave.co/3joSNMT) to lock down your machine. However, those same security measures can render a Mac useless in a legitimate sale on the secondhand market.

A report by Vice (fave.co/3RwUeVO) highlights the frustrations of an independent compute repair specialist and refurbisher, John Bumstead, who tweeted about the "millions" of MacBooks that have been "condemned...to death" because of Apple's Activation Lock (fave.co/3ynFxu7). This feature associates a device with an Apple ID and is automatically turned on when you activate Find My Mac within the Apple ID settings on your Mac. With Activation Lock active, the Apple ID username and password have to be entered to gain access to the Mac, even if it has been erased.