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Kiosk Mode & Login PIN

Secure shared clinic devices with a lock screen. Staff select their profile and enter a PIN to unlock.

Secure shared clinic devices with a lock screen. Staff select their profile and enter a PIN to unlock. This guide covers enabling Login PIN, Kiosk Lock, and registering devices.

Why Use Kiosk Mode?

Dental clinics often share computers at the front desk or in treatment rooms. Without kiosk mode, anyone with physical access to an unlocked browser can view patient data, appointments, and financial information.

Key reasons to enable kiosk mode:

  • Protect patient data - Each staff member must enter their PIN to access the system, preventing unauthorized browsing of sensitive records.
  • Quick user switching - Doctors and staff can switch between accounts in seconds using a PIN, without logging out and back in.
  • Auto-lock on inactivity - If a staff member walks away, the screen locks automatically after a configurable timeout.
  • Progressive lockout - After repeated wrong PIN attempts, the account is temporarily locked with escalating durations (3 min → 5 min → 15 min → 1 hour → 24 hours).
  • Audit trail - Security events are logged when PIN attempts fail or lockouts occur.
Kiosk mode requires Login PIN to be enabled first. The two features work together.

How It Works

Kiosk mode has three layers, enabled in order:

  1. Login PIN - After logging in with email and password, users must also enter a 4–6 digit PIN for full access. This applies to all users on the account.
  2. Kiosk Lock - On registered kiosk devices, a lock screen appears after a period of inactivity. Staff select their profile and enter their PIN to unlock.
  3. Device Registration - Only browsers explicitly registered as kiosk devices show the lock screen. Your personal laptop won't be affected.

Enable Login PIN

  1. Log in to Dentare as an account admin
  2. Go to Settings → Devices (https://dentare.io/clinic/settings/devices)
  3. Find the Kiosk Lock Settings section
  4. Toggle on Require a PIN

Once enabled, all users will be asked for a PIN after logging in. Turning this on also enables Kiosk Lock automatically. Users who haven't set a personal PIN yet will use the default PIN.

Default PIN

New team members who haven't set their own personal PIN yet sign in with the clinic's default PIN. Out of the box this is 1234.

Share the default PIN with your team and remind them to set their own personal PIN as soon as possible. Changing the default PIN itself is not yet self-service in Settings - contact Dentare support if your clinic needs a different one.

Enable Kiosk Lock

  1. Go to Settings → Devices
  2. In the Kiosk Lock Settings section, toggle on Enable Kiosk Lock

This activates the lock screen feature, but it only appears on devices you register as kiosks (next step).

Set the Inactivity Timeout

The inactivity timeout controls how long the system waits before locking the screen after no activity.

  1. Go to Settings → Devices
  2. In the Kiosk Lock Settings section, find Inactivity Timeout (seconds)
  3. Set the number of seconds (minimum 30, default 180 = 3 minutes)

The value saves as soon as you leave the field.

Every page load or action resets the timer. The lock screen only appears after the full timeout passes with no activity.

Register a Device as a Kiosk

Only registered devices show the lock screen. To register the browser you're currently using:

  1. Go to Settings → Devices
  2. Scroll to the Kiosk devices section
  3. Enter a name for this device (e.g. "Reception iPad") and click Enable kiosk on this device
  4. The device appears in the list with a This device badge

Repeat this step on each shared clinic device (front desk computer, treatment room tablet, etc.). Registration only works from the device itself - you can't register a device remotely.

Each row in the device list shows when the device was registered, when it was last used, and how many biometric (Face ID / Touch ID) credentials are enrolled on it.

Locking a Device Remotely

If a shared device is unattended and you want to force the lock screen without walking over to it, click Lock this device now next to it in the Kiosk devices list (only shown for the device you're currently on).

Disabling a Kiosk Device

To remove a device from kiosk mode:

  1. Go to Settings → Devices
  2. In the Kiosk devices section, find the device
  3. Click Disable and confirm
Disabling a device stops it from locking. To use it as a kiosk again, you must enable it fresh from that device.

How the Lock Screen Works

When the lock screen appears on a kiosk device:

  1. All team members are shown as profile cards with their name, photo, and role
  2. Tap or click on your profile
  3. A PIN keypad appears - enter your 4–6 digit PIN
  4. Click Unlock
  5. You're back in the system, right where you left off

The lock screen also shows:

  • A live clock with the current date
  • Your clinic's name and logo
  • Trust indicators (Encrypted, Cloud Secured, GDPR Compliant)

Advanced Settings

For fine-tuned control, go to Settings → Devices and scroll to Kiosk Lock Settings:

  • Inactivity Timeout (seconds) - Seconds of inactivity before the lock screen appears (default: 180 seconds / 3 minutes)
  • Max FaceID Failures - Number of biometric failures before PIN is required (default: 3)
  • Progressive Lockout Durations - Duration of each lockout stage in seconds after repeated wrong PINs. 5 stages, default: 180s (3 min), 300s (5 min), 900s (15 min), 3600s (1 hour), 86400s (24 hours)
  • Send Email at Stage - Which lockout stage triggers an email alert to the clinic owner

Each field saves as soon as you leave it - there is no separate save button for this section.

How Staff Set Their Own PIN

Each team member sets their own personal PIN from their own account, not from clinic settings:

  1. Log in to Dentare
  2. Go to Your account → Kiosk PIN (https://dentare.io/account/kiosk-pin)
  3. Enter your current PIN (or the clinic default PIN if you haven't set one yet), your new 4-6 digit PIN, and confirm it
  4. Save

Until a personal PIN is set, the clinic's default PIN is used. The same page also lets staff enroll Face ID / Touch ID for faster unlock on a kiosk device they are currently registered on, and shows how many devices already have biometrics enrolled.

Remind all staff to choose a unique PIN and not share it. The PIN is personal - like a password.

Troubleshooting

The lock screen doesn't appear Make sure all three steps are completed: Login PIN enabled, Kiosk Lock enabled, and the current device registered as a kiosk. All three are required.

I forgot my PIN Ask your clinic admin. From Settings → Team & Access, they can open your team member row and click Reset kiosk PIN to reset it back to the clinic default. If the admin is locked out, contact the Dentare team.

"Account locked" message appears After too many wrong PIN attempts, the account is temporarily locked. Wait for the lockout period to expire (shown on screen), or ask an admin for help.

The lock screen appears too quickly Increase the inactivity timeout in Settings → Devices under Kiosk Lock Settings. The minimum is 30 seconds.

The lock screen appears on my personal device Your personal device was registered as a kiosk. Go to Settings → Devices, find it in the Kiosk devices list, and click Disable.

Staff members can't unlock Make sure they have either set a personal PIN at Your account → Kiosk PIN or know the clinic's default PIN.

On this page

Why Use Kiosk Mode?How It WorksEnable Login PINDefault PINEnable Kiosk LockSet the Inactivity TimeoutRegister a Device as a KioskLocking a Device RemotelyDisabling a Kiosk DeviceHow the Lock Screen WorksAdvanced SettingsHow Staff Set Their Own PINTroubleshooting