Normally, and just like Leo, I stay logged in. Yes, you do have to log back into your computer, but the advantage is that your web session with whatever site you’re on remains active and is not interrupted you can pick up right where you left off instead of having to begin a whole new session. “At least sign out when you know you’ll be stepping away for a while.”Īn alternative to this might be to simply lock the screen (CTRL-ALT-DEL, then click “lock”).

It’s also about security in generalīe sure to do all of the other things it takes to keep your computer safe on the internet.īut if you’re doing that, and you don’t have somebody running around your home who’s going to cause trouble while you’re not around, I wouldn’t worry. If you don’t, can’t, or just aren’t sure, then signing out is the safest thing to do. It all comes down to how much you trust the people with access to your computer when you’re not around. If you walk away leaving yourself signed in, someone else could compromise your account, or at least cause trouble. This is the clearest example of other individuals accessing the same computer you’ve used. The obvious counter-example is public or otherwise shared computers. It’s the latter scenario at my house: no one else is going to cause problems. On the other hand, if you know no one would try to do something inappropriate, there’s really no need. At least sign out when you know you’ll be stepping away for a while. If the answer is yes, it’s a good idea to sign out when you’re done. Someone elseĬould someone else walk up to your computer and start using it? More pragmatically, of all the people in your home that might be able to, would they? Would they cause trouble by poking around in your signed-in accounts? I can make some assumptions about my machines, however, that allow me to feel safe doing so. I’m probably signed in to my Gmail accounts for days at a time and across multiple machines here at home. I’m signed in to email - and all my other accounts, for that matter - all day long. If you’re not certain or know that others pose a risk, then absolutely sign out when you walk away. As long as someone else won’t access your machine while you’re not around, or those who can are trustworthy, then staying signed in is generally safe.

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