Setting Up Claude on Your PC or Mac: Safe Download, Sign-In, and Privacy Settings

Verito Technologies | Last Updated: 10/13/2026

1. What this article covers

Claude is the AI assistant made by Anthropic. This article walks you through installing the Claude desktop app on your own computer, Windows PC or Mac, and setting it up the safe way for a firm that handles client tax and financial information. It covers where to download it, how to install it, which account to sign in with, the privacy settings to change on day one, what to let Claude connect to, and how to keep the app updated. Where Windows and Mac differ, the step says so; everything else applies to both.

It is written for your local computer. Putting Claude on your VeritSpace hosted server is a separate process that Verito handles for you; see Section 10. Which Claude plan your firm should buy, the client consent question, and what your written AI policy needs to say are covered in Using AI Tools in Your Firm: Setup and Safe Use Guide. If your firm has not settled those yet, read that guide first.

2. Before you start

3. Step 1: Download Claude from the official page only

1. Type the address yourself. Open your browser and go to claude.com/download. Do not search for "Claude download" and click whatever comes up first; sponsored results are where fake installers hide.
2. Pick the download for your computer. On a Mac, choose macOS. On Windows, most PCs use the standard Windows option; pick Windows (arm 64) only if you know your PC has an Arm processor. The page also links to a Microsoft Store listing for Windows; if you prefer the Store, use that link rather than searching the Store by name.
3. Check what landed in your Downloads folder. You should have a single installer file from Anthropic. If you received a ZIP archive, a file with "Pro", "Premium" or "Cracked" in the name, or anything you did not ask for, delete it and go back to step 1.

4. Step 2: Install it

1. Open the downloaded file and follow the prompts. Anthropic's own instructions are the same on both platforms: open the file to complete the installation, then launch Claude from the Start menu on Windows or from the Applications folder on a Mac (Install Claude Desktop).
2. Allow the permission prompt if you have administrator rights. On Windows, that gives you the full install; without administrator rights, Claude still installs, but Claude Cowork will not be available on that PC. On a Mac, enter your password when macOS asks, as you would for any other app going into the Applications folder.
3. Do not click past a security warning. On Windows, that means a message that the publisher is unknown, that the app is unrecognized, or that Smart App Control blocked it. On a Mac, it means a message that Claude cannot be opened or that Apple cannot verify it. In either case, stop. Do not use right-click Open, a terminal command, or any other workaround. Delete the file and download it again from the official page. If the warning comes back, contact Managed IT before going any further.
4. Launch Claude from the Start menu (Windows) or the Applications folder (Mac). It will ask you to sign in.

5. Step 3: Sign in with the right account

Claude offers two ways to sign in: Continue with Google, or Continue with email, which sends a login link to your inbox. There is no separate Claude password (Log in to your Claude account). That has a practical consequence: your Claude account is exactly as secure as the email or Google account behind it.

1. Use your firm's work account. Sign in with your work Google account or your work email address, never a personal Gmail, Outlook or iCloud address. If your firm's Claude Team workspace uses single sign-on, sign in that way; Using Claude Team Safely covers how that is set up.
2. Make sure multi-factor authentication is on for that email or Google account. Because there is no Claude password, the second factor on your mailbox is the thing that stops someone else requesting a Claude login link in your name. If you are not sure whether it is on, ask whoever manages your email.
3. Keep personal Claude accounts off the work computer. A personal account is invisible to your firm, cannot be removed when someone leaves, and runs under consumer terms. If Verito provides your WISP, its AI section prohibits consumer AI tools for firm business, not only for client work.

6. Step 4: Set the privacy settings on day one

If you are on a personal plan (Free, Pro or Max)

On personal plans, a setting called "Help Improve our AI models" decides whether your chats can be used to train future Claude models. When it is on, Anthropic may keep your data in de-identified form for up to five years (How long do you store my data?). Turn it off before you type anything. The path is the same on Windows and Mac:

1. Open Settings. Click your name or initials in the lower left corner of the Claude window, then Settings.
2. Open Privacy. You can also reach the same page in a browser at claude.ai/settings/data-privacy-controls.
3. Switch off "Help Improve our AI models." Then close and reopen Settings to confirm it stayed off (How do I change my model improvement privacy settings?).

Two things this toggle does not do. It does not pull back anything already used in a completed training run, which is why doing it first matters. And it does not stop Anthropic from reviewing a conversation its safety systems flag; those may still be used to improve its trust and safety systems (same Anthropic article). Turning off training is also not the same as deleting your history: chats stay in your account until you delete them, and a deleted chat is removed from Anthropic's back-end storage within 30 days.

If you are on your firm's Team or Enterprise plan

There is no training toggle to find. Team and Enterprise run under Anthropic's Commercial Terms, which state that Anthropic may not train models on customer content from those services (Anthropic Commercial Terms of Service). Your workspace owner should keep a copy of those terms with the firm's vendor records; the Team checklist linked in Section 5 walks through that and the other workspace-level settings.

7. Step 5: Control what Claude can reach

A chat window only sees what you paste into it. The features below reach further, and each one deserves a deliberate decision rather than a default.

Connectors

A connector lets Claude access your apps, retrieve your data and take actions inside the connected service, such as your email, calendar or cloud drive. Everything connected is listed under Settings, then Customize, then Connectors, where you can disconnect a service or review what it can access. Anthropic's own guidance is to review what access a service requests when you connect it and to disconnect services you no longer use (Use connectors to extend Claude's capabilities).

• Connect the narrowest thing that does the job. One folder, not the whole drive. One calendar, not the whole mailbox.
• Leave connectors to any mailbox or drive that holds client returns off until whoever manages your Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace has checked the sharing permissions behind it. A connector reaches everything your account can reach.
• Never connect your password manager to Claude, under any configuration.
• On a Team or Enterprise workspace, let the workspace owner decide which connectors are available to the firm, so there is one list of what is connected.

Claude Cowork and screen control

Claude Cowork reads and writes files in the folders you connect on your computer, and it can browse the web for you using a built-in browser. Newer features let Claude click, type and navigate your screen directly. All of this is limited to the folders you connect and the permissions you already have (Use Claude Cowork on web, desktop, and mobile). It is available on paid plans only; chat is the only feature on the Free plan.

• Create one folder specifically for Cowork and connect only that. Never point it at Documents, Desktop, a whole drive, or any folder tree that contains client files.
• Keep approval steps on. Modes that reduce how often Claude asks before acting are convenient and the wrong choice while client data is anywhere nearby.
• If you do not want a task to draw on what Claude remembers about you, turn off Memory in the plus menu before you start it (same Anthropic article).
• Leave screen-control features off until your firm has decided, in writing, where they may be used.

8. Step 6: Keep it updated

The desktop app updates itself on both platforms. On Windows it checks for updates roughly every four hours and applies them automatically (Deploy Claude Desktop for Windows). On a Mac it installs into the Applications folder and updates automatically when new versions are released (Deploy Claude Desktop for macOS). Leave that alone. To check by hand, open the app's Help menu and choose Check for Updates (Claude Desktop documentation). An update never arrives by email, text message, or a pop-up website. If something outside the app tells you Claude needs updating, it is not Claude.

9. Everyday rules once it is running

• Mind what goes in. Anthropic itself advises against sharing Social Security numbers, credit card or bank account numbers, passwords, and confidential business or personal documents with Claude (Anthropic on sensitive data). Your firm's policy and the Green, Yellow and Red data tiers in the AI tools guide go further; follow them.
• Use an incognito chat for one-off questions you do not want kept. Click the ghost icon in the upper right of a new chat. Incognito chats are not saved to your history, are not used to improve Claude even if the training setting is on, and are retained for 30 days by default (Use incognito chats). That is a convenience, not a license to paste client data.
• Check every answer before it goes near a client. Open each citation. Confirm each figure against current-year authority. A citation you cannot find is a fabrication.
• Lock the screen when you step away. Windows key plus L on a PC, Control plus Command plus Q on a Mac. Claude stays signed in on the desktop app, so an unlocked screen is an open account.
• Laptop lost, stolen, or signed in somewhere you should not have? Sign out everywhere: open claude.ai in a browser, click your initials in the lower left, choose Settings, open Account, and click Log Out. That signs you out of every browser, phone and desktop app at once (How do I log out of all active sessions?). Then tell Managed IT.

10. Want Claude on your VeritSpace server instead?

11. Quick reference

12. Getting help

• Managed IT support (your PC or Mac, security warnings, suspected fake installer): itsupport@verito.com or (844) 629-9899.
• Cloud hosting support (Claude on your VeritSpace server): support@verito.com or (844) 917-9399.
• Claude subscription, billing or account questions: Anthropic's Claude Help Center at support.claude.com.
• Client consent or IRC Section 7216 questions: your firm's legal counsel.

Settings paths and plan details in this article were checked against Anthropic's published documentation on 10/13/2026. Anthropic changes Claude often; if a menu does not match what is described here, check the Claude Help Center for the current path. This article is general information about installing and configuring software. It is not legal or tax advice, and it does not certify compliance with any regulation.

Sources

• Anthropic: Install Claude Desktop
• Anthropic: Download Claude
• Anthropic: Deploy Claude Desktop for Windows
• Anthropic: Deploy Claude Desktop for macOS
• Anthropic: Claude Desktop documentation
• Anthropic: Log in to your Claude account
• Anthropic: How do I change my model improvement privacy settings?
• Anthropic: How long do you store my data?
• Anthropic: Commercial Terms of Service
• Anthropic: Use connectors to extend Claude's capabilities
• Anthropic: Use Claude Cowork on web, desktop, and mobile
• Anthropic: Who can view my conversations?
• Anthropic: Use incognito chats
• Anthropic: How do I log out of all active sessions?
• Malwarebytes: Fake Claude site installs malware that gives attackers access to your computer (04/10/2026)

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• Using AI Tools in Your Firm: Setup and Safe Use Guide
• Using Claude Team Safely: A Configuration Checklist for Your Firm
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• Protecting Your Computer with Endpoint Security