How to Lock the iPad With a Passcode or Password

The iPad is a wonderful device, but like your PC, it can contain quick access to information you may not want everyone to see. And as the iPad becomes more capable, it also becomes more important for it to become secure. The most obvious reason to lock your iPad with a passcode is to stop a stranger from snooping around if you ever lose your iPad or it gets stolen.

But there are more reasons to lock your iPad.

For example, if you have young children in your household, you may want to make sure they don't use the iPad. If you have Netflix or Amazon Prime on your iPad, it can be easy to pull up movies, even R-rated movies or scary movies. And if you have a mischievous friend or co-worker, you may not want a device that can automatically log into your Facebook account lying around the house.

Luckily, it is very easy to secure your iPad with a passcode.

First, you will want to go into your iPad's settings. You can get to these settings by clicking on the icon that looks like gears in motion. ​Help Opening the iPad's Settings

Scroll down the left-side menu and tap"Passcode". This will bring up the iPad's passcode settings, which includes turning passcode on and what information to display when the iPad is locked.

Simple Passcode On or Off?  Before you enable a passcode on the iPad, you will need to choose between a 4-digit passcode or an alphanumeric password that can be any length.

You can think of the simple 4-digit passcode as similar to signing into an ATM. Most people elect to stay with the 4-digit passcode, but if you want an extra level of security, you can turn off "Simple Password", which enables you to create a password of any length.

One thing to keep in mind is what happens when you type in the wrong passcode.

After a few failed attempts, the iPad will begin temporarily disabling itself. This starts with a minute lockout, then a five-minute lockout, and eventually, the iPad will permanently disable if the wrong password keeps being entered. ​Read: How to Fix a Disabled iPad

Turn on Passcode. Once you have decided on the type of passcode, it is time to turn it on. This is as simple as tapping the "Turn Pascode On" option at the top of the screen. You will be asked to enter your passcode and then verify it by typing it a second time. And that's it. Your iPad is now secured with a password.

Before Your Leave the Passcode Lock Settings:

While your iPad will now ask for the passcode, there are a few things that are still accessible from the lock screen:

Siri. This is the big one, so we'll start with it first. Having Siri accessible from the lock screen is extremely useful. If you love to use Siri as a personal assistant, setting meetings and reminders without unlocking your iPad can be a real time saver. On the flip side, Siri allows anyone to set these meetings and reminders. If you are mainly trying to keep your kids out of your iPad, leaving Siri on is fine, but if you are worried about keeping your private information private, you may want to turn off Siri.

Today and Notifications View. By default, you can also access the 'Today' screen, which is the first screen of the Notification Center, and normal Notifications while on the lock screen. This allows you to access meeting reminders, your daily schedule and any widgets you have installed on your iPad. It is also a good thing to turn off if you want to make your iPad completely secure.  

You can also set up restrictions for your iPad, which can turn off certain features such as the Safari browser or YouTube. You can even restrict app downloads to apps appropriate for a certain age group. Restrictions are enabled in the "General" section of the iPad settings.

Find out more about enabling iPad restrictions.