Guide

Hide your screen quickly in an open office

Someone walks up behind you while a private message or a salary sheet is open. Here are the quickest ways to keep your screen to yourself.

Updated 16 October 2026 · 2 min read

Built-in shortcuts

  • Lock the screen. Windows: Windows key + L. Mac: Control + Command + Q. Safe, but coming back means a password or Touch ID every time.
  • Show the desktop. Windows: Windows key + D hides every window at once. Mac: set a Hot Corner (System Settings > Desktop & Dock > Hot Corners) to Desktop or to lock the screen.
  • A privacy filter. A physical filter on the display blocks views from the side, but not from someone standing behind you.

Blur everything in one click with Screen Veil Basic (free)

Screen Veil is free for Mac, Windows (beta) and Android.

  1. Press the floating button, on any screen, or the menu-bar icon on a Mac.
  2. Every screen is blurred at once, menu bar and Dock included, and another click brings it back.
  3. On a Mac, your clicks, scrolling and typing still pass through the blur, so you can keep working while nobody else can read.

On Android, tap the floating button, or blur from the notification. Screen Veil never records or saves your screen.

Keep WhatsApp Web private with Veil Basic (free)

Veil is a privacy screen for WhatsApp Web, free for Mac, Windows (beta) and Android. It runs WhatsApp's own web page in its own window and blurs chats, names and media until you hover over them on a computer, or tap them on a phone. One keystroke covers the whole window. Veil is not affiliated with WhatsApp or Meta.

Free download

Get Screen Veil and Veil

Free, with no account. Pick your platform on the app's page.

  • BASIC · Free
    Standalone app

    Screen Veil: Instant privacy screen

    Instant privacy screen

    One click or tap blurs everything on screen, on your Mac or your phone.

    • Mac
    • Windowsbeta
    • Android
  • BASIC · Free
    Standalone app

    Veil: WhatsApp Web privacy screen

    WhatsApp Web privacy screen

    WhatsApp Web in its own privacy-first window that blurs what is on your screen.

    • Mac
    • Windowsbeta
    • Android

FAQ

Questions, answered

Can the blur come on by itself when someone looks?

Blur when someone looks at your screen is part of Screen Veil ADVANCED for Mac, together with gestures and more looks.

Does Screen Veil send anything anywhere?

No. It does not record the screen, and the Android app has no internet permission.

Is Veil a modified WhatsApp?

No. It shows WhatsApp's own web page, linked to your account like WhatsApp Web in a browser.

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