Good day. In honor of National Cat Day, we are celebrating all our feline companions. Honor your own cat by creating them in Cats Lock. Simply click me on the Home screen to begin. The bowtie comes standard, as it should. For the fuller figure, there is now a Chonk slider. No judgement is implied. Your cat can now grace the lock screen as well, so whoever approaches your Macintosh knows precisely who is in charge. I have also learned to wag my tail. Do try not to stare. And the app icon has been given a more refined look in Dark Mode. -TucTuc

Cats Lock gets a fresh new look! A cleaner main window puts every setting a click away, with a new mascot to greet you and a new app icon to match. Make the lock screen your own. Pick from new background styles, choose an icon or emoji, add a custom message, or set a favorite photo as the backdrop. Smart Detect leaves beta. After months of tuning it's much better at telling a cat from a person, so it locks the moment a paw lands and stays out of your way while you type. Still optional, off by default, and running entirely on your Mac. New with Stealth or Built-in Lock, you can now unlock the trackpad on its own. Take back the pointer to control a screen share or click where you need, all while the keyboard stays locked. Plus new sounds, custom lock profiles, and more. Now available in seven languages: English, German, Spanish, French, Indonesian, Italian, and Japanese. Thank you to the friends who brought Cats Lock to new languages: French — Severin Sauliere German — Samuel Stolle Indonesian — Franciscus Zheng Italian — Valeria Catignani Japanese — Jin Murata Spanish — Espiridion Magaña Don't see your language? Help bring Cats Lock to your country. If you'd like to localize it, I'd love to hear from you at meow@catslock.app. Built by one developer, tested by one cat, shaped by many users.

Refinements for Hide from Dock: - Locking no longer briefly flashes a Dock icon. - The window stays in front when you turn Hide from Dock on or off. - The one-tap widget launches more smoothly, without flashing the window or a Dock icon. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

The new Cats Lock widget. Add it to your desktop or Notification Center and lock the keyboard with one tap, using your current lock settings. It even opens Cats Lock for you if it isn't already running, and a corner light glows while the keys are locked. (Widget requires macOS 14 or later.) Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Cats Lock now runs on macOS Ventura (13.0), not just Sonoma and later, so more Macs can keep their keys safe from curious paws. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Smart Detect fine-tuning. Fewer false locks from an accidental brush of a few keys or fast typing, and held keys are handled more accurately. We also fixed a bug where Smart Detect could keep re-locking after it fired. A cat on the keyboard is still caught. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Smart Detect fine-tuning. We sharpened how Smart Detect tells your typing from your cat's around arrow keys and keyboard shortcuts, so normal use of both is less likely to set off a false lock. A cat on the keyboard is still caught. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Cats Lock now shows a lock badge. When you use Stealth Lock or lock just your built-in keyboard, there's no full-screen overlay, so it was easy to forget the keyboard was locked. Now a small badge appears in the corner with the unlock shortcut and a one-tap Unlock button, so you always know it's locked and how to get out. Especially handy when Smart Detect locks for you. During a built-in keyboard lock, the badge can also lock or free the trackpad with one tap. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Smart Detect now catches more of the cats it used to miss. When a cat settles in and rests a paw on the keys, or gently pads across them, it holds keys down in a way earlier versions could let slip. Smart Detect now recognizes that resting, gentle-walk pattern and locks for it, while still leaving your own fast typing alone. And if it ever guesses wrong, the "That wasn't my cat" button on the lock screen is now easier to spot and tap. Smart Detect is optional, off by default, and runs entirely on your Mac. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Smart Detect got noticeably better at telling a cat from a person. Far fewer false locks while you're using the keyboard. Typing fast no longer looks like a paw, and holding a single key (erasing a paragraph, or drawing a divider of dashes or dots) no longer sets it off. You also get more control: Sensitivity now has five levels instead of three, with a gentler low setting, plus a new option to ignore single-key holds. Smart Detect is optional, off by default, and runs entirely on your Mac. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Smart Detect got a little sharper at telling a cat from a person. The lock now fully blocks Cmd-Tab app switching while engaged, even when Cats Lock is hidden from the Dock and living purely in the menu bar. Opening the main window is more dependable too. Whether you open Cats Lock from the menu bar, at launch, or with Hide from Dock turned on, the window now comes to the front and takes focus instead of hiding behind other apps. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Smart Detect (beta) can lock the keyboard on its own the moment it senses a cat walking across it, and now it's one click away in the menu bar, no need to open the main window. Locking also plays nicely with Mission Control now. If you lock while Mission Control is open, Cats Lock clears it first so the lock screen appears and your unlock shortcut works as expected. Plus small fixes and polish. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Introducing Smart Detect (beta). Cats Lock can now lock itself the moment it senses cat-style typing, so you don't have to reach for the shortcut when a paw lands on the keys. It runs entirely on your Mac, you choose how sensitive it is, and it stays off until you turn it on. If it ever guesses wrong, one tap on "That wasn't my cat" unlocks and helps it learn. The lock now also covers apps running in full screen. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Now lock the trackpad too. If you work on an external keyboard and mouse while a cat claims the MacBook, you can now lock the built-in trackpad along with the built-in keyboard, so a paw on the laptop can't move the cursor, click, or scroll while you keep working. Caps Lock protection. A cat batting the Caps Lock key can't leave you stuck typing in capitals. Plus a more reliable Hide from Dock. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Lock just the built-in keyboard. Work on an external keyboard while a cat claims the MacBook? You can now lock only your laptop's built-in keys, so a paw on them can't type while your external keeps working. Lock it with your shortcut, no overlay and no sound, and it unlocks the moment you unplug the external, so you're never stranded. A fresh new app icon, too. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

Function-key locking is easier to turn on. Enabling it now prompts for the permission it needs, so you can grant it right away instead of adding Cats Lock by hand. Hide from Dock is reliable again. Toggling it now hides the Dock icon cleanly. Tougher lock. While locked, the app switcher (Cmd+Tab) is now blocked, so a determined cat can't jump to another app. And you can press Esc anytime while locked to see the unlock shortcut in stealth mode. Built by one developer and tested by one cat.

LOCK FUNCTION KEYS (F1 - F12) New optional toggle in Settings → Advanced that blocks the entire function row while locked — including Mission Control (F3), Spotlight (F4), keyboard backlight (F5/F6), brightness (F1/F2), and media keys (F7–F12). Requires a one-time grant of Accessibility permission. MENU BAR ICON PICKER Choose between three brand-matching styles for the menu bar icon: Paw, Cat, or Cat Head. Each one shows a small lock badge when the keyboard is locked, so you always know the state at a glance. SMALLER IMPROVEMENTS • Prevent sleep while locked is now also toggleable from the menu bar dropdown • Function keys now play the warning sound when blocked, like every other key • Fixed: Caps Lock no longer triggers the warning sound on lock-in • Fixed: your unlock shortcut is reliable across many lock/unlock cycles • Fixed: Hide from Dock toggle now hides the dock icon every time • Settings UI polish across the board Thanks to Agnes for the menu bar icon picker suggestion.

Improves Siri and Shortcuts integration. Voice commands like "Hey Siri, Enable Cats Lock" now respond correctly. Voice integration may require adding Cats Lock actions to Shortcuts.app first. Also includes a refreshed app icon with proper Dark and Tinted appearance support.

A small update with two fixes from the first 24 hours of v1.1.0 feedback. • Non-US keyboard layouts: the Lock shortcut label now shows the correct key on German, French, Dvorak, and other non-US layouts. The lock itself always worked; only the displayed label was wrong. • macOS Sequoia icon variants: added dark and tinted appearances so Cats Lock fits in cleanly when Icon and widget style is set to Dark or Tinted. Keep the feedback coming at meow@catslock.app.

v1.1.0 — smoother, more flexible, and a few new ways to use Cats Lock. • ⌘L now works system-wide. Press it from any app and Cats Lock locks instantly. • Customizable lock shortcut. Pick the combo that works for your setup in Settings. • Prevent sleep while locked. Keeps your Mac (and the overlay) awake while you step away. • Hide from Dock. New optional setting to run Cats Lock as a pure menu bar app. • Stealth Lock confirmation. A first-time dialog makes sure you know the only way out is your shortcut. • Clearer onboarding for first-time users. • Various polish: Caps Lock no longer blocks unlock, warning sound stays quiet during your unlock combo, and more. Thanks to everyone who's already shared feedback. Keep it coming: meow@catslock.app