Check Activation Lock on a Mac before you buy.
An Activation-Locked Mac can't be reset without the previous owner's Apple ID. The wrong answer to this question is the most expensive single mistake in a private-party Mac sale. A free Macfax Basic report verifies Activation Lock, Find My Mac, iCloud binding, and MDM enrollment in one signed URL.
Three locks, one transaction.
Activation-Locked Macs can't be reset
If the previous owner's Apple ID password is required and they're unreachable, the Mac is functionally bricked. Apple's owner-removal process exists but is slow and not guaranteed. Verify before you pay.
Find My Mac can re-lock a device remotely
Even if Activation Lock looks off at the time of sale, an enabled Find My Mac on the seller's iCloud account can re-lock the Mac after you take possession. Confirm Find My is disabled, not just Activation Lock.
MDM enrollment is a separate lock
Macs that were corporate-owned can be enrolled in Mobile Device Management. The lock is separate from Activation Lock, and the company that owns the MDM tenant decides whether to release the device. Macfax surfaces MDM/DEP enrollment as part of Basic.
Three ways to verify, ranked by certainty.
From the listing alone
Ask the seller for the serial number, then run it through Apple's Coverage Check at checkcoverage.apple.com. Coverage Check confirms the serial is real but does not show Activation Lock state. That's the gap Macfax fills.
From a Macfax report
If the seller has run a Macfax report, the report URL shows Activation Lock state, Find My state, iCloud account binding, and MDM enrollment, all in one place. Basic is free for the seller to issue.
In person at handoff
Boot the Mac, watch for the lock-screen Activation Lock prompt, and walk through System Settings → Apple ID → Find My to confirm Find My Mac is off. The seller should sign out of iCloud in front of you before payment changes hands.
The full pre-purchase lock check, signed.
Free Macfax Basic surfaces every lock-relevant signal a buyer should confirm before payment, and the report URL stays available indefinitely.
- Activation Lock state
- Find My Mac state
- iCloud account binding
- MDM and DEP enrollment
- Serial number cross-check with Apple's database
- Apple Coverage Check status
Don't buy a locked Mac.
A free Macfax Basic report on the listing closes the lock question before money moves.