Frequently Asked Questions

'Croissantage', also called 'chocoblast', is an office practice that teaches employees to lock their session. Someone walks away from an unlocked workstation, a colleague emails the team from it, and the careless one brings pastries the next day, croissants or chocolate rolls. Conviviality instead of a reprimand, and the habit sticks. The details are on the Concept page.

The concept of ChocoBLAST was invented in 1998 by a famous Swiss chocolate brand (whose logo features a cow). Following Switzerland's failure to qualify for the Football World Cup, the brand sought to boost sales. They sent brochures to tech companies to raise awareness about unsecured session risks, suggesting using open email boxes to force careless employees to offer chocolates to their department.

For a 'croissantage' to be valid, several official rules apply. The surrender email must be sent from the victim's personal address to at least two team members. It is strictly forbidden to 'croissanter' someone who is still in the same room as their computer. The debt (pastries) must be paid quickly, although delays are tolerated during Lent or Ramadan.

The only foolproof method to avoid paying for croissants is to lock your computer as soon as you step away. Windows + L on a Microsoft environment, Control + Command + Q on macOS. These reminders are also on our Concept page and in the lock screen gallery.

'Croissantage' rests on benevolence and pedagogy. This practice must remain good-natured and never be malicious or humiliating. For example, it is advised against going to extremes (like changing the keyboard language, changing the wallpaper to inappropriate images, or modifying system sounds), as the goal is to establish a positive corporate culture, not to create tension.

Yes. Chocoloc, choco lock in two words, or a typo made in a hurry: it is spelled ChocoLOCK, and you are in the right place. The tool is here.

A plain email gets a laugh and stops there. ChocoLOCK shows a prevention screen that tells the person caught out what an open session actually exposes: a data leak, a stolen identity. The joke becomes a demonstration, at the exact moment it lands.

The targeted mode allows trapping a colleague remotely. From your mobile, scan the QR code displayed on the target's computer (or enter the short code). You can then trigger the lock screen of your choice directly from your phone. Available styles are presented in the gallery.

The Flash mode is designed for speed. It instantly displays a critical error screen (Red Screen of Death) without asking for a name or configuration. Handy when you only have a few seconds before your colleague returns. You can launch it from the home page or the gallery.

Yes and no! The Super ChocoLOCK mode prepares a complete email in the victim's default email client (Outlook, Mail, etc.). The email contains a commitment message to bring pastries. However, the final sending always requires a validation click, which prevents accidental sending while marking the occasion.

It is a free satellite page of ChocoLOCK with several types of fullscreen fake screens: updates, screensavers, errors, loading screens, broken screens and solid colors. Everything happens on the dedicated /screens page.

Go to /screens, choose a screen type, then launch the simulator you need from the dedicated subpage. The browser switches to fullscreen. Press Esc or use the button in the top-right corner to exit.

No. Like the rest of ChocoLOCK, it is purely visual. The browser displays a web page, nothing is installed, no file is read, modified or sent anywhere. Close the tab and everything goes back to normal.

Croissantage is for raising awareness when a coworker forgets to lock their session. The screen simulators are a complementary tool for generating fullscreen displays directly in the browser.

ChocoLOCK is a PWA (Progressive Web App): a version of the site you can install like a native app, without going through the App Store or Play Store.

In practice, you get: - An icon on your desktop, Start menu, or home screen - A dedicated window without an address bar or tabs - Quick access to Flash, Targeted, and Super modes - The same features as online — nothing extra to download beyond the site

Installation depends on your device. Follow the steps that match your situation.

Desktop — Chrome or Edge (Windows, Mac) 1. Visit [chocolock.fr](/en) in Chrome or Edge 2. Click the install icon (⊕) in the address bar, or the "Install" button at the top of the site 3. Confirm the installation: the ChocoLOCK icon appears on your desktop or in the Start menu

Mobile — Android (Chrome) 1. Open [chocolock.fr](/en) in Chrome 2. Tap the ⋮ menu in the top-right corner 3. Select "Install app" or "Add to Home screen" 4. Confirm: the icon is added to your home screen

Mobile — iPhone / iPad (Safari) 1. Open [chocolock.fr](/en) in Safari (required on iOS) 2. Tap the Share button (square with an upward arrow) 3. Scroll down and choose "Add to Home Screen" 4. Name the app if needed, then tap "Add"

Uninstalling removes no data: you can still use ChocoLOCK from your browser.

Desktop — Chrome or Edge - Open the ChocoLOCK app, click ⋮ in the top-right corner, then "Uninstall ChocoLOCK" - Or type chrome://apps (Chrome) or edge://apps (Edge) in the address bar, right-click the icon, then "Remove"

Android - Long-press the ChocoLOCK icon on your home screen, then choose "Uninstall" or "Remove"

iPhone / iPad - Long-press the icon, tap "Remove App", then confirm

No, never. ChocoLOCK is a lock screen simulator. At no time do we ask for, record, or have access to real session identifiers, passwords, or company data. It is a purely visual awareness tool.

The name you type for a ChocoLOCK is stored with the prank, for your history if you have an account; it never leaves through the public API. Global statistics only count types and dates. Details are in the privacy policy.

Yes, the basic use of ChocoLOCK is entirely free.