Technology Tales

Adventures in consumer and enterprise technology

Locking your computer screen faster using keyboard shortcuts

Published on 11^th January 2026 Estimated Reading Time: 1 minute

When you are doing paid work on a computer, locking one's screen is a healthy practice for ensuring privacy and confidentiality while you are away from your desk for a short while. For years, I have been doing this on Windows using the WIN (Windows key) + L keyboard combination. It is possible on a Mac too, albeit using a different set of keys: CTRL (Control) + CMD (Command) + Q. While the Lock Screen item on the Apple menu will accomplish the same result, a simple keyboard shortcut works much, much faster. On Linux, things are a lot more varied with different desktop environments working in their own way, even making terminal commands a way to go if you can use a heavily abbreviated alias.

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